


My Favourite Red Scarf

by Rnd_Injustice



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Eventual Romance, F/M, Gen, Introvert meets Extrovert
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-01
Updated: 2019-01-05
Packaged: 2019-01-27 21:46:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 102,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12591208
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rnd_Injustice/pseuds/Rnd_Injustice
Summary: A shy bookshop owner is corned by a loud, overbearing skeleton. What happens when an introvert meets the most extroverted person on the planet?





	1. First Dawn

Y/n took a long, deep breath, gazing out into the open sea from her favourite shaded park bench. The sun was just starting to peck out. She hadn’t meant to stay out so long, pulling an all-nighter, but it wasn’t the first time that time had run away for her. She often liked to come out in the dead of night and allow her thoughts to wonder, in the calm, cool and peaceful night air. Some people wrote in dairies, others talked to people, but Y/n always found talking her thoughts out loud to the still night air worked wonders with sorting out her mind and feelings.

'Still', she thought as she pushed herself off the bench to stretch her muscles, 'it had been a great night and worth a few hours of sleep. Man! It was good to unwind.' She looked around her favourite night haunt, noting the sea that lay before her, the child’s playground and the winding path that circled the area. Dawn’s light changed how she saw it, but not the fondness she felt for it, for it really was a nice place to unwind. She saw the morning hot beverage guy finishing setting up, getting ready for the morning rush. On days like this, she was often the first customer he had.

“AH YES HUMAN, I WOULD LIKE A CUP OF YOUR FINEST TEA”.

But today he was serving a tall skeleton in a red scarf.

_'Wait.'_

_'What..?'_

Ok, so this wasn’t the first monster that she had ever seen (that honour belonged to a gelatinous monster that had asked her for directions to a good dry cleaners) and she also happened to live in the city closest to Mt Ebott, so it wasn’t like the monster population didn’t make up a significant proportion of the population. However, this was the first time she had ever seen a monster that fell into the ‘vaguely human’ or ‘undead’ categories. Most times, monsters looked like humanoid animals or weird objects.

_'Maybe I will have a tea before I go.'_

“I SHALL HAVE SOME OF YOUR ‘EARLY GREY’, FOR IT SOUNDS REFINED AND PROPER. THE PERFECT CHOICE FOR THE GREAT PAPYRUS.”

“That’ll be $17.20.”

_'What a rip off!'_

The tall skeleton frowned as he pulled out his wallet, “OH! UM, I’M AFRAID I DON’T HAVE THAT MUCH MONEY ON ME.”

He looked downright sad _'….Were those tears?'_

“It’s ok, I'll pay for it.”

Both the man and the skeleton turned to look at her in surprise.

“Lady, you don’t have to pay for the monster-.“

“Oh, but I insist”, Y/n was now standing next to the skeleton, hands on her hips and quite angry. “-and I must also insist on a receipt so that I can show everyone that there is a guy who thinks an Earl Grey tea is worth $17.20! Or is that same guy going to change the price because I'm human!"

The hot beverage guy was looking uncomfortable, his eyes skirting around. “Look, um, how about we just forget this ever happened? And your drinks are on the house! A sort of ‘sorry’ for this mistake.”

“And you’ll swear this will never happen again?”

“I swear.”

“Good, then I'll have an early grey too.”

A few moments later, both Y/n and the tall skeleton were walking away with their teas, making their way slowly back to the shady park bench.

“I MUST THANK YOU FOR YOUR KINDNESS HUMAN. I HAD NO IDEA THAT HE WAS INCREASING THE PRICE.”

“How long has that been going on?”

“OH, UM, I GUESS FOR ABOUT A MONTH NOW?”

“Well, I'm sorry that guy was being a jerk to you for so long. You don’t deserve that.”

The skeleton looked down into his tea, seemingly to be at a loss for words.

“I hope you’ve met some humans who aren’t jerks. I swear, we aren’t all like that.”

He seemed to perk up at that. “NO, OF COURSE NOT! MY HUMAN BOSS PETE IS VERY KIND TO ME AND SOME OF THE CUSTOMERS I’VE MET ARE EQUALLY NICE. PLUS, I HAPPEN TO THE BESTEST FRIEND WITH THE MONSTER AMBASSADOR, FRISK.” He turned to look at her. “AND, I’VE JUST MET YOU.”

Blushing hard, Y/n looked away from the sincere expression on the kind skeleton’s face. “Th-thank you”, she whispered shyly. She looked back up at the skeleton. “B-but really, I didn’t do anything a decent person wouldn’t have done in such a situation.”

By now, they had returned to the park bench where Y/n sat down, warming her hands with her tea.

“NONSENSE HUMAN, YOU HAVE DONE ME, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, A GREAT SERVICE AND I AM GRATEFULLY FOR THE HELP.” The Great Papyrus stood before Y/n, hand outstretched with a huge grin plastered across his skull. “HUMAN, I WOULD LIKE TO ASK FOR YOUR NAME AND TO ACCEPT YOUR FRIENDSHIP.”

Y/n chocked on her tea.

“I, err, I'm not sure you want me as a friend.”

The Great Papyrus gasped, “BUT OF COURSE I DO, WHO WOULDN’T WANT TO BE FRIENDS WITH THE GREAT PAPYRUS?”

“B-but, we’ve only just met today! We don’t know anything about each other. You don’t even know my name!”

The Great Papyrus seemed to think about that for a second, before his eye lights lit up and he skulled his entire tea in one go.

“That tea was really hot! Are you-“

“THIS SITUATION MUST BE RECTIFIED IF I AM TO OBTAIN A COOL NEW HUMAN FRIEND!”

The Great Papyrus pointed a gloved hand at a startled Y/n. “YOU MUST COME WITH ME NOW ON A ‘FRIENDSHIP MORNING RUN’ WHERE WE WILL STRENGTHEN THESE BOUNDS INTO A GREAT AND LONG LASTING FRIENDSHIP!”

The Great Papyrus pulled Y/n by her arms and steered her towards the winding path.

“Wait!” Y/n pulled back, frightened by just then how strong the skeleton was.

The Great Papyrus turned around, confused that she wasn’t as eager as he was. She took a big breath, straighten her shoulders to look up into the tall skeleton’s puppy dog eyes, _'how was that even possible?'_

“I-I don’t want to go on a run with you. I’ve been up all night and I am very, very tired. I’m sorry”, she ended lamely, unable to look him in the face.

“ARE YOU SAYING YOU DON’T WANT TO BE FRIENDS?”

Y/n gasped, looking up, “No, but-!”

The Great Papyrus seemed to think this over, before he lifted a startled Y/n into the air, turned and placed her back on the park bench.

“THEN I WILL HAVE MY ‘FRIENDSHIP MORNING RUN’ AROUND THE PARK BENCH AND MY NEW FRIEND.”

Before Y/n could say anything else, The Great Papyrus began to do just that, and jog around her park bench.

“HUMAN, WHAT SHOULD I CALL YOU?”

Baffled and still trying to come to terms with the fact that she had just been lifted and placed onto a bench by the same skeleton who was now jogging around her while asking seemingly random questions, Y/n struggled to answer.

 “Umm, I'm Y/n, and you’re The Great Papyrus, right?”

The Great Papyrus seemed to start at that, but he quickly recovered.

“ERM YES! THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS MY NAME! CORRECT HUMAN!”

The Great Papyrus posed, before returning to his jog.

“HUMAN, WHERE DO YOU WORK AT?”

 “I-I, u-um, work at a b-bookshop.”

“INTERESTING! I WORK PART TIME AT A REFINED CAFÉ.”

“O-oh, th-that sounds nice-“

“INDEED IT IS, WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE COLOUR?”

“Um, I guess blue, maybe green?”

“MY FAVOURITE COLOUR IS THE MOST DASHING RED.”

“Oh, your scarf-“

“WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE ANIMAL?”

“Err, tortoises are pretty cool, I guess.”

Y/n lost track on how many questions The Great Papyrus asked and answered, there was a lot to take in. She knew that he had a brother, high connections to the monster government, a trainer, enjoyed said training (apparently even in his free time), had a car and loved driving it, and didn't trust dogs.

“WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE FOOD?”

“Let’s see, I like stir-fries, pasta and I have a bit of a sweet tooth-“

The Great Papyrus skidded to a stop, grasping his face while his eyes seemed to sparkle.

“YOU LOVE PASTA TOO?!”

“Um, yes, I mean, I enjoy it now and th-“

Y/n was pulled into a crushing hug as The Great Papyrus spun her around in tight circles.

“OH HUMAN, I KNEW WE WOULD BE THE BEST OF FRIENDS! IT SEEMS WE WERE FATED TO MEET THIS DAY! I’M SO HAPPY!!”

The Great Papyrus let Y/n go, who quickly lost her balance and fell to the ground, dazed. Before she even realised that she had fallen, The Great Papyrus stooped down before her, his face inches away and his phone held out for her.

“WE MUST EXCHANGE PHONE NUMBERS AND MET AGAIN AND OFTEN TOO! OH, I MUST SHOW YOU HOW TO BEST PREPARE THE PERFECT SPAGHETTI DISH, AND SOMEONE WHO ENJOYS THE REFINE TASTE OF PASTA WILL SIMPLY ENJOY THE INTRICATE ART OF PUZZLE MAKING. NOT TO MENTION THE ENTIRE WORKS OF METATTON (WHO IS THE GREATEST ACTOR OF ANY GENERATION), MY RARE AND HIGHLY SORT AFTER ACTION FIGURE COLLECTION AND THE GREATEST CAR EVER, OWED BY YOURS TRULY AND-”

The Great Papyrus stood up, overwhelmed by everything that he was saying and all the plans he was trying to arrange within the space of a millisecond.

Y/n didn’t know how to feel about all this. Things were going way too fast for her to even begin processing her own thoughts and feelings about the situation. She was used to her slow-paced life, were friendships came slowly (if ever) and plans were made weeks in advance. She didn’t live on a schedule, but she certainly wasn’t spontaneous. She was still trying to figure out where this tall skeleton got his energy from!

She looked down at the phone in her hand. The Great Papyrus phone’s wallpaper seemed to be a photo of sparkling pasta. Smiling at the ('photoshopped?') effect, Y/n took a moment to consider what she should do. What she really wanted was more time to decide, to think this through properly. She didn’t like feeling rushed and that feeling was making her somewhat uncomfortable. Sure, she liked The Great Papyrus enough; he seemed to be a harmless ball of energy and emotions, sincere and honest, but a phone number was something she couldn’t take back. What if he wanted to talk all the time, or hang out every day? She didn’t feel comfortable with that. She was basically going from 1km p/h to 100km p/h! Shouldn’t this be some sort of progression or some steps in between?!

She jumped when the phone in her hand rang loudly, startling both her and The Great Papyrus. They both looked down at the phone, a picture of a scary fish monster with very sharp teeth was grinning up at them. She was sure she had seen this monster before…

The Great Papyrus gulped before snatching the phone from her hand.

“OH DEAR, IT’S SO LATE! UNDYNE IS GOING TO KILL ME” *CLICK* “HELLO THIS IS PAPYRUS SPEAKING, WHOM CAN I ASK IS-“

A voice of a gruff lady blasted like a bullhorn through the phone’s speaker, all but shattering it was far as Y/n was concerned. “I’LL TELL YOU WHO IT IS YOU BONEHEAD, IT’S THE CAPTAIN WHO’S GOING TO KICK YOUR BONEY BUTT FROM WHEREVER YOU ARE ALL THE WAY OVER MT EBBOT IF YOU DON’T GET OVER HERE IN THE NEXT 30 SECONDS!!”

Papyrus (Y/n started to doubted that ‘The Great’ was an actually part of his name) saluted, despite the phone lady not being able to see it, “YES MAM!”, before turning and sprinting away.

Papyrus called over his shoulder as he fled “WE MUST MEET AGAIN ANOTHER DAY HUMAN!”

“Um, sure, Papyrus.”, Y/n waved awkwardly back.

She thought she saw him smile, but soon he had rounded a corner and was gone from her day.

_'What the hell just happened?'_

Y/n felt like she needed paper and pen to joint down what just happened, to see if there were any logical connections between paying for someone’s tea to a friendship morning run with a skeleton jogging around you in circles. She wanted a play by play, slowing down each moment to register every emotion and feeling that changed more often than a strobe light. She needed an interpreter or some sort of spectator to translate into plain, introverted English what that was all about. She, she… she really needed a nap.

 

 Next chapter is called: My Favourite place to be


	2. My Favourite place to be

Y/n made her way back to her bookstore that happens to double as her apartment. She loved her store/ home. Owning a bookstore had been the single biggest gamble she had ever made in her timid life.

After high school, she, like most teenagers, didn’t really know what she wanted to do. Going to university had seemed the most logical choice, and doing a Bachelor of Arts was a great option for the girl who didn’t know what she wanted to do. In her first semester, she studied journalism, film, game design and education. While she could rank the classes on how much she had enjoyed them, what she had really enjoyed was reading the textbooks, an opinion that she had to constantly defend against her fellow classmates. She loved the new knowledge, the different aspects to explain the same situation and even the layout of information, complete with pictures and eloquent graphs. The best textbooks where the ones where you could feel an actual human had typed it and not some emotionless committee by design.

Of course, she had always loved reading and had thought about being a librarian often, but that profession had always felt too…clinical. It was more about keeping track of the books than helping the right person find the right book. So, when she had seen an old pub with its own above apartment on sale, outside and near the developing mall area, Y/n had made many trips and detours, just looking in and imagine what she would do if she had such a place. Her study flat became a place that had less to with her assessments and readings and was instead covered with blueprints, plans, book catalogues and basic number crunching. Her parents told her she was crazy, that she should wait or change her degree to a business one, but Vic, her older sister, had been all on board with the idea. What finally got to Y/n were Vic’s constant reminders that the place would be sold eventually, and that time waits for no one.

Y/n had snapped, quit university, took up a loan and bought the place. She then had spent every waking hour buying books and building materials, changing the layout from an old English wooden pub into an old-style wooden bookstore, polishing and refining the store's layout and decor. Y/n had even found and installed a spiral staircase, cause damn it, she had really wanted one! Naming her beloved store Textual Content, Y/n had, at first, struggled to run the business, making a few mistakes along the way. As she learned and grew, the area and the mall surrounding her grew, leading towards a mutually beneficial partnership with the next-door coffee shop Coffee Stained Pages. She never looked back at university and had loved the 2 years she had spent there so far.

What had ultimately helped her business grow was a really late night customer. Actually, a pair of monster customers. Her very first monster customers since they were first allowed into the city.

On this late night, like many work days, she found herself with a good book, in a comfortable position and with no idea just how late it really was. The mall owners were forever scolding her for keeping her hour irregular and late, but she had yet to master the art of keep track of time. So there she was, enjoying her book when suddenly her store’s door was slammed open, startling Y/n, who dropped her book. As she bent to pick it up, she missed the approaching monsters, till one of them slammed something down onto her service desk.

“OI! Bookshop owner! We need a book!”

With a squeak of terror, Y/n rose herself from the store’s floor to come face to face with a scaly fishy face with a sharp tooth glare.

Unable to tear her eyes from this scaly fish monster, Y/n missed the softer approach of a yellow dinosaur monster with a hairdo that would remind her of a Simpson character.

“U-Undyne, y-you need to show the b-book’s title f-first.”

The scaly fish monster backed up and looked down at the yellow dinosaur monster with something that could almost be described as tenderness.

“Sure babe, I’ll make sure you get that textbook.”

Then she stood taller than before, facing Y/n once again, “That is, if this clerk doesn't want to be a jerk about it.”

The scaly fish monster leaned down, levelling herself so that she was eye to eye with Y/n “How about it? Are you going to refuse us service because we’re monsters? Cause my girlfriend REALLY needs that book and she is GOING to get that book, if you catch my threat.”

Y/n gulped loudly, “N-no, of course, it isn’t a pr-problem. I, err, j-just need the book’s title.”

The scaly fish monster stood up, with a bigger grin than before, hand held out with a piece of paper clutched loosely with her web hand. Tentatively, Y/n reached out and took the paper, reading the book’s title and author. Ah, she knew where this book was.

“We have a copy, i-if you’ll follow me, I-I’ll take you straight to it.”

Y/n made her way to the aisle that contained her store’s collection of electricity and technology, looking back at the monsters and gesturing them to follow her. The fish monster seemed cautious while the dinosaur monster seemed relucent to follow. After a quick glance between them, both monsters followed Y/n down the aisle, who was squatting next to the book they were after.

Taking the book from the self, Y/n turned and handed it to the dinosaur monster, who was closest. “Here it is and it’s a great read to help you understand the basic and some of the more advanced theories of electrical theory and application”

“Th-thank y-ou”, stuttered the dinosaur monster who seemed reluctant to look Y/n in the eye.

“Y-you’re welcome. Although, if you could tell me what area of study you wished to focuses on, I could help you find a better book.”

As Y/n crouched back to her books, the dinosaur monster handing the book over to the fish monster before she too, joined Y/n on the floor.

“This book goes into great details on the types of materials that could be used, both internal and external, with a lot of hypnotised theories of the advancements that could be made to the already existing structures of a typical power plant. This book explores the sources that electricity could be obtained and measures the effectiveness of extracting electricity against conventional and unconventional means. I like this book in particular as it explores self-regulation power sources with enough artificial intelligence to be self-reliant, but you will need to understand basic artificial intelligence for his work to make any sense.”

The more she talked, the less nervous the dinosaur monster seemed to become. After a while, she even began to ask questions and Y/n was all too eager to drag her to another section that linked to the original question but in more depth. After all, as Y/n was fond of telling people, knowledge is interlinked and branches towards many sources.

“Hey Shopkeeper! You’re not just trying to get us to buy more books than we need, are you?”

The question startled both herself and the dinosaur monster, both turning to look towards the fish monster, who was glaring at Y/n with distrust.

“I-I’m sorry. I-it wasn’t my in-intention. I-I was just-” Y/n walked back over to the register. “I’m sorry, is there anything else I can help you with tonight?”

The fish monster was still glaring at her, but she turned to look at the dinosaur monster, who had returned to stand by the fish monster, still as shy as she had been. With a smirk, the fish monster handed over the book to Y/n, who scanned it.

“Ok, that’ll be $34.72 today, would you like to pay for that with cash or card?”

“Hold up punk!”

Y/n jumped, her hands twitching as she attempted to place the book into a bag. “W-what’s wron-“

“Why is the price the same as the book’s sticker?!”

“U-um, th-that’s because th-the book’s la-label st-states the prices a-and th-that’s wh-what the book costs.”

“I know that! What I want to know is why you didn’t charge us more?!”

“D-id y-you want me to?”

The fish monster seemed to gasp at that, temporarily at a loss for words. “Wha- well of course I don’t want to pay more! But that hasn’t stopped every other human from raising the prices for monsters!”

“I’m so-sorry to hear t-that”, Y/n finished lamely.

The fish monster regarded her for what felt like an eternity before she threw her head back and howled in laughter, startling the other two in the room. Before Y/n could ask what was wrong, she was pulled across the counter and into a bone-crushing hug that also crushed her shriek of surprise.

“Oh human, you really don’t care that we’re monsters in a human store?”

Y/n struggled to answer, worrying that she was just about to make her situation worse, “You’re not in a human store, you’re in my store and I don’t care.”

Y/n looked over to the dinosaur monster, who seemed as shocked as she felt, “You’re both lovely customers who haven’t hurt my books or my store. You’re not trying to rob or steal from me and I’m sure if there were other customers, you wouldn’t be rude to them either.”

That had the fish monster laughing again before she spun Y/n in circles. In a whirl of colours, she thought she even saw the dinosaur monster smiling too. Not soon enough, Y/n was placed back on the floor, desperately clutching the deck for support.

“Human, you’re just made my night! All day, Alphys desperately needed that book but no one would sell to us without inflating the price to ridicules levels or flat out refusing to sell at all! But not only were you still open, but it turns out you’re a decent human! Do you have any idea how rare that is!?”

Y/n could only look up at the tall fish monster as she posed, her eyes alight with a manic fever.

“I’m going to tell everyone about this bookstore! Hey Alphys! Are there any more books you want to get while we’re here?”

The dinosaur monster’s eyes light up, “of course! I-I’ll be right back!”

Then she was off, scrying the aisles and pulling books off the shelves creating a tall stack. The fish monster followed her, reached over her and lifted the books from the dinosaur's grasp, who blushed heavily. The fish monster chuckled before she lowered a kiss on the dinosaur monster’s forehead, who turned the brightest shade of red Y/n had ever seen.

~*~

Ever since that night, Textual Content was flooded with monster customers, customers who were eager to read and learn about the new world they found themselves in. Sure, there were small groups of humans and business that had a problem with it all, but when they saw how much business Y/n was getting, many were quick to change their tunes. As monsters were accepted more openly, the mall and the surrounding business flourished and expanded. Soon, the mall was hiring night security staff, who Y/n could see patrolling as she made her way back home.

_'Hard to think that night happened just under a year ago.'_

Today, like she had planned, was a day the store would be closed. It was the reason why she stayed out all night (and early morning now), so that she could sleep in on this lovely, lazy Sunday.

Opening the store’s doors before locking them behind her, Y/n took in the wonderful sight and smell of her favourite place in the entire world.

_'My Home, Mine'_

More satisfying words had never been spoken in the English language.

Well, except one, as she looked over at her spiral staircase that leads to her apartment.

_'Bed.'_

 

 Next chapter is called: But what if.....?


	3. But what if...?

Y/n was leaning back at the register, a book held up to her face as she avoids Matt's inquisitive stare.

"Is it a new haircut? Nah..... can't be a new book."

She put down the book, glaring at Matt's grinning face, "I've already told you it's nothing, so you can just stop thinking about it and go back to your shop."

While he crackled, she quickly hid her face in her book once again.

It had been exactly one day since she had bumped into Papyrus and she just couldn't stop thinking about it. What if he expected to see her every day? What if he had waited for her all weekend? What if he thought she didn't show up because she didn't want to be friends or worse, that she was some sort of racists ( _'monster-ist?'_ )?

Matt, of course, had picked up on her twitchy behaviour; there wasn't much his coffee-addled brain didn't see. She figured it had taken him from walking in with another cup of coffee she was bound to dislike, to one look on her guilty face (before she could hide behind her book). Next thing she knew, he came leaning over her counter and asking her what was wrong. Matt was nice and all, but he had this way of minimising her conflicts, making her feel like she was overthinking things.

Still, she wasn't sure what to do about Papyrus and if there was one thing she hated more than feeling belittled, it was being indecisive.

Taking a deep breath, she blurted out, "I-I met a monster the other day."

He laughed, "Oh my god, that explains it! No wonder you're so twitchy, you kinky freak!"

"What?! No! That's not what I meant-!"

He ignored her, grasping her shoulders while her face reddened, "You actually left your little nest and met someone. Oh, I'm so proud!"

She shook off the patronising idiot, her face still red with embarrassment. He shrugged, taking a sip of his own coffee, "Are you falling for a monster then? Was he anything like your books?"

Y/n spluttered, her face neon red, "How can you just say things so blazay? Can you even feel shame?"

He laughed, slapping his leg "Talking to you is like talking to my grandparents! How can you be this young and yet still think this old?" He gestured at her and her furious, blushing face.

She dove behind her book, regretting every life decision that leads to her being here today and getting subjected to this torture.

After a while, Matt quietened down long enough to ask, "What was he like?"

She put down the book again, considering, "He was nice...?"

Matt gave her a disbelieving stare.

She sighed, "Okay, he was pretty full on. Really energetic and super positive about everything."

"So your opposite?"

She shoved him. "It's not just him though, every monster customer I've met so far has had really eccentric personalities. They're all just seem so happy to be here."

"That really shouldn't surprise you, right? It's only been about a year since they escaped or whatever."

She hadn't considered that.

"Have you ever met a monster then?"

Matt shrugged, "Nah, heard a few good things though."

"Would you hire one?"

He scoffed, "Yeah right."

Matt must have noticed the look she was giving him because he raised his hands "oh sure, your mind would go straight to 'Matt's a racist."

Y/n folded her arms, "What else can it be?"

He rolled his eyes, "How about the fact that they're so rare, rich and powerful?" He waved his arms, gesturing vaguely at the store, "You have any idea what a monster wearing your company's logo would do to sales? I'm not saying there aren't racists out there who wouldn't hire based on that, but you can't deny the eye-catching ability of a thing with tentacles and with like, five eyes or something."

He continued, "Monsters, with all their gold and the whole 'everybody wants to hire them' thing can have practically any job. Why would the settle for being a barista?"

"This monster said he worked at a cafe."

Matt raised a hand to his chin, "Hun? Wonder how they managed to pull that off." He perked up, "Hey, you wouldn't happen to have his contacts would you? I'd love to get a monster wearing one of my uniforms."

She laughed, "I wouldn't count on it. He seemed pretty happy with his job."

"Just means I'll have to offer more then." He clapped his hands together, "So, about that contact number?"

"I don't actually have it."

"What? Then why are you so nervous then? It sounds like you just met the guy once and had a bit of a conversation. Nothing life changing there."

Y/n looked away, "He, um, he wanted to meet up again."

Matt rolled his hands, indicating for her to continue.

She sighed heavily, placing the book down, "I don't know what to do Matt. I mean, you should have seen him. He was really excited and he just had so much energy that is was kinda hard to keep up with him."

She rushed on, " He called me his best friend within a few minutes of meeting, ran around me the entire conversation and shared his entire life story all because I stopped this jerk from overcharging him!"

She stopped, looking over at Matt, who was quietly sipping his coffee, "I don't know if I can be friends with someone like that. I mean, do I even want to be friends with someone this full on? What could I even offer? It's not like I could keep up with him, that's not who I am." She buried her head in her hands, "I just don't know what to do Matt."

"Is that's got you so worked up?"

She nodded.

"You see the problem, right?"

She shook her head, looking up at him.

"You're trying to make a decision you wish you had more info about.", he chuckled.

He stopped leaning on the bench, looking at her, "My advice? See this guy one more time and then decide."

"But I can't say no to people, you know that Matt. What if I meet him and I don't want to be friends? What if he asks for my number again and I don't want to give it to him? I don't want to hurt his feels."

Matt placed a hand on her shoulder, "You don't have to, just be honest with the guy. Or you know, you can always change phone numbers again."

When she didn't look convinced, he continued, "Or you can sit here forever wondering about this guy, wondering if you hurt his feelings, if you did the right thing or what could have been."

He hugged her tightly, whispering in her ear, "I'll always be here if something goes wrong, okay? Don't worry so much and trust yourself like I do."

He stood back, holding her shoulders, "Go let your freak flag fly."

"You almost said something really nice there." She laughed; face blushing again, "you had me worried you suffered a stroke or something."

Matt rolled his eyes, "Y/n, you're completely forgetting how we first met."

"Oh, you mean the day you walked in, insulted my books and taste in coffee?" she said sarcastically.

"If I recall, it was you who insulted my coffee first."

"All I said was ' I don't drink coffee'!"

"And all I said was 'who reads books anymore?'."

"How did we become friends again?" Before he had a chance to answer, she continued, "oh that's right, you kept coming by with a new black mess, that wasn't coke, insisting that one day you'd find the 'coffee to my heart'. And here we are." She sipped the abandoned coffee Matt had brought today, pursing her lips, "Still horrible."

Matt chuckled, sipping his own cup, "I bet you didn't think we were ever going to be friends either." Matt wagged a finger in her face, "The lesson here is that 'Matt is always right'. Tell you what, got a pen handy? I really think you need to have that write down somewhere."

While he was busy rummaging around her desk, looking for a pen and notepad, she considered his words. He was right (words she was never allowed to say out loud in front of him), she hadn't thought they would get along. He seemed upbeat and too social to ever want to hang out with the antisocial bookworm. Now she was glad that he owned the next door coffee shop and actually enjoyed his annoying pop-ins while his employees did all the real work.

As she looked over at him pinging a note to her cash register, she realised what the key difference between Matt and Papyrus was; Matt had forced himself into her life. Now, for the first time, it was her decision to pursue this or not. If she was glad that Matt was in her life, would she be glad to have Papyrus in it too?

Taking a deep breath, she announced, "I've decided I'm going to go and see him again."

He gave her a thumbs up, "Good for you, and I will be needing details about your date."

"It's not a date!"

Matt chuckled as he roughed up her hair, "Sure it isn't."

While she was pushing him out of the door and putting her 'No coffee shop owners' sign up at her front door, she considered what she had just embarked on. She had never sought anyone out before, content to just go along with the flow and let the chips land where they may. She feared rejection or making people mad or sad or any emotion really. She was her own worst enemy, second guess everything she said and it took people a really long time to get to know her before she stopped sabotaging herself. As Matt said, they were friends now, and she was glad to have him, but even that hadn't been easy. She hoped she would get a just as good friendship out of Papyrus, or at least had enough courage to be honest with the guy.

_'After all, I can always just change numbers.'_

 

 Next chapter is called: Round 2


	4. Round 2

Well, here she was. A full week since she first met Papyrus, doing exactly what she had been doing when she had first met him; talking to herself in the early morning hours. Today's topic? What the hell was she even doing here and what was she going to say?

This hadn't been the plan. No, the plan involved going the next day after talking to Matt. But then she had paperwork that suddenly became important, then she overslept, then she didn't sleep at all. Of course, Matt had mocked her for her indecisive and 'back-peddling'.

The smug jerk was correct, of course, but it still didn't make her feel any better. Every time she thought about tomorrow and actually seeing Papyrus, she happily made plans, looking forward to them, with some hesitation but still fully committed to them. Come morning and it was all she could do to stop herself from throwing up, as excuses after excuses came to her.

So, Y/n had done what she always did when something was on her mind and wouldn't leave; she came out for a night-talk. The irony wasn't lost on her.

Over there past hours, as she watched the sun slowly rising, she had been rehearsing and planning exactly she was going to say to him.

"Hi, you may not remember me, but I'm the human who said they'd meet up with you, and I know it's a week later, but I want you to know that it's got nothing to do with you being a monsters, I'm just shy and you're kind of the opposite of that, so if you still want to, maybe we can talk more?"

There was silence as this latest, train-wreck of an introduction was fully absorbed in objective horror.

"Why is this so hard!?"

She threw herself back onto the picnic bench, staring at the disappearing stars. This was hopeless.

_'Maybe I should write this down, hand him a letter? If I go back now, I can grab paper and pen and be back here before he comes?'_

Tempting as doing that was, she knew that if she left, she wouldn't come back. Although now she sure wished she had some paper.

Pushing herself up, she stared intently at a nearby bin, imagining it was Papyrus.

"Hi Papyrus, I'm the human you met here last week. My name is-"

"Y/N, IS THAT YOU?"

Y/n spun around, staring at her nightmare walking towards her; Papyrus smiling at her with no plan on what she was going to say.

"IT IS YOU! I'VE BEEN HOPING TO MEET YOU AGAIN. AND HERE YOU ARE!”

She stared, her mind going through a hard crash and requiring a reboot.

Papyrus came over, concerned, “HUMAN, ARE YOU OKAY?” He raised a hand to his skull, “IS THERE SOMETHING ON MY FACE?”

“n-no. th-there’s no-noth-ing wrong with y-your f-face.”

She looked away hiding her face in her hands.

“IS THERE SOMETHING WRONG WITH YOUR FACE?”

“No, I’m fine” she mumbled through her hands.

_‘I’m mortified, but my face is fine…turning tomato red is totally suppose to happen. Yep, everything is going according to plan.’_

“THEN WHY ARE YOU LOOKING REALLY CLOSELY AT YOUR HANDS? ARE YOU MARVELING THE FEEL AND TEXTURE OF YOUR SKIN? *SIGH* THAT MUST BE NICE.”

She looked up to see him looking wistfully at his own hands. She finally noticed that he was holding two cups, one in each hand.

“What are the cups for?” she asked.

“OH!” he offered one of the cups to her, “I’VE GOT YOU A CUP OF TEA. YOU KNOW, SINCE YOU GOT ME ONE THE LAST TIME WE MEET.”

She stared at him for a moment, before smiling, “Thank you Papyrus”, taking the cup from him. “How did you know I was going to be here today?” she asked.

“I DIDN'T” he said brightly, “I’VE BEEN GETTING TWO CUPS EVERYDAY ON THE OFF CHANCE THAT YOU HAPPENED TO COME BACK. AND HERE YOU ARE!”

She felt awful, ashamed of her fear of meeting this sweet monster again.

“I’m sorry Papyrus. You shouldn’t have wasted all that money on me” she mumbled.

“BUT I WANTED TO GIVE YOU A TEA, TO PAY YOU BACK FOR YOUR KINDNESS” he said brightly. He looked behind himself, “THAT NICE TEA MAN HAS BEEN GIVING ME FREE DRINKS EVERY DAY, WHENEVER I MENTION THAT ONE OF THEM WAS FOR YOU.”

She looked behind him and saw the hot beverage guy glaring at her.

"Oh.”

Great, now she had indirectly ticked off the guy she liked to buy her drinks from after her night talks. Knowing her luck, he probably spat in this drink or something.

“IS SOMETHING WRONG Y/N?”

She back to see Papyrus looking at her inquisitively.

She quickly shook her head, “It’s nothing.”

An idea occurred to her, “In fact, since you were nice enough to give me a cup of tea, how about we go for a walk around the park?”

His eyes lit up, “A FRIENDSHIP MORNING RUN?!”

She rubbed the back of her neck, “I’m not much of a runner. I was thinking a leisurely stroll where we could talk while we enjoyed our teas."

"OH" He looked sad at the prospect of walking with her.

"O-of course, you don't have to, if you don't want to." She looked away, towards home.

_'I wonder if it's too late to sprint home, bury myself under my pillows and never-.'_

"I WOULD LOVE THAT, HUMAN" He posed," I MEAN, IT'S NOT AS GOOD AS A FRIENDSHIP MORNING RUN, BUT A FRIENDSHIP MORNING MEANDER COULD BE QUITE FUN, AND THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS WILLING TO TRY ANYTHING ONCE." He leaned down closer to her, hands on his hips, "BUT HUMAN, YOU SHOULD CONSIDER GOING ON FRIENDSHIP MORNING RUNS WITH ME. THEY'RE GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH AND YOUR BLOOMING RELATIONSHIPS WITH HANDSOME, YET MISUNDERSTOOD SKELETONS!"

"B-but I'm not a runner." she said lamely.

"NONSENSE! EVERYONE CAN RUN! ...WELL, THAT'S NOT TRUE, OUR PET ROCK CERTAINLY CAN'T, BUT I BELIEVE IN YOU HUMAN!" He picked her up, lifting her high off the ground, "DO NOT BE AFRAID THAT YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO KEEP UP WITH THE GREAT PAPYRUS, BECAUSE NO ONE CAN! THAT IS AN IMPOSSIBLE DREAM! BUT WITH MY HELP, WE WILL GET YOU TO SECOND PLACE, BUT FOR NOW, WE HAVE A FRIENDSHIP MORNING MEANDER TO START."

Placing her back on the ground, Papyrus grabbed her free hand and they were off, taking a brisk stroll around the park.

"SO, WHAT DAYS SHOULD WE HAVE OUR FRIENDSHIP MORNING RUNS ON?"

"Um, er..." She took a long drink of the tea to buy some time.

_'Why couldn't he ask for my number? I can change that! I don't wanna wake up early to go for runs!'_

"HUMAN?"

"Do I have to?" She sighed/whined.

"YES HUMAN, IT'S GOOD FOR YOU AND ALL YOUR FLESHY PARTS" He stopped, a hand on his hips, "WHY WOULDN'T YOU WANT TO IMPROVE YOURSELF IN EVERY WAY? THAT'S HOW I BECAME SO GORGEOUSLY AWESOME!"

_'Quick brain, think of a way out of this mess!'_

"Ah!" she turned to him, grinning, "The brain is also a fleshy part and it's important that it gets exercise too."

He brought a hand to his chin, thinking intently, "...YES, THAT DOES MAKE SENSE" He looked back at her, "HOW DO WE EXERCISE IT?"

"With brain teasers! Puzzles for the mind", her grin growing. From what she remembered, Papyrus loved puzzles, so if she used one to bargain against morning runs, she could get out of it! A perfect, non- confrontational way out of this mess.

_'Y/n, you're a smart cookie. Yes, yes I am.'_

"MIND PUZZLES?!"Papyrus's eyes boggled.

"Yep, and if you can get this right, I'll go on that friendship morning run with you." She grinned; no way he was going to get this one.

Papyrus threw his head back, "NYEH HEH HEH!" He posed, cup still in his hand, "I AM THE PUZZLE MASTER. FEAR NOT HUMAN, FOR I WILL SOLVE THIS LITTLE PUZZLE OF YOURS AND WE CAN GO ON OUR FRIENDSHIP MORNING RUNS AS SOON AS TOMORROW. *GASP* WHAT AM I SAYING, WE'LL BE ABLE TO DO IT TODAY! NYEH HEH HEH!"

She loved his enthusiasm, which would kill her if she was forced to go on a morning jog with him.

_'Better make it a hard one then.'_

"Okay Papyrus, translate this."

They dumped their now empty cups in the bin as they made their way over to the beach. She bent over and drew this sentence in the sand. **Y Y U R Y Y U B I C U R Y Y 4 ME**

"Got it?"

Papyrus was staring intently at the sentence, before he nodded, "GOT IT" He grinned, "DON'T WORRY HUMAN, WE CAN STILL GO FOR OUR FRIENDSHIP MORNING MEANDER. I AM SO AMAZING THAT I HAVE MEMORIZED THIS SENTENCE PERFECTLY, AND HAVE THE SUPERIOR ABILITY TO THINK ABOUT IT WHILE WE TALK AND WALK!"

They returned to the pathway, continuing the walk.

"That's...impressive." _'A bit egotistical, but still impressive.'_

Papyrus blushed, "I KNOW THAT I AM. YOU MUST BE SO HAPPY TO SPEND THIS MORNING WITH ME!"

She chuckled, "Oddly enough I am. I'm having fun."

His blush got even brighter, "OH NO! GENUINE ENJOYMENT!" he turned away from her, "YOU- YOU'RE TRYING TO FLUSTER ME HUMAN, AREN'T YOU?! BUT IT WON'T WORK!" He grinned, still blushing, "I AM IMPERVIOUS TO FLUSTERING. YOU'LL NEED TO TRY HARDER THAN THAT IF YOU WISH TO STOP ME SOLVING YOUR PUZZLE!"

She laughed, "I wasn't trying to fluster you Papyrus. I'm really just having a great time."

He gasped, "NYEH! THE MASTER PUZZLER WILL NOT BE BEATEN BY YOUR TICKS HUMAN! I CAN BEAT YOU AT YOUR OWN GAME!"

He cleared his throat, "HUMAN, YOU LOOK NICE TODAY!"

"Thank you?"

He grinned, "YOU'RE HAIR IS LOVELY AND I LIKE WHAT YOU HAVE DONE TO IT!"

Several of the nearby joggers were openly staring at them now.

She blushed, looking away, "Papyrus, please stop."

"AH HA! IT'S WORKING! *AHEM*, HUMAN! YOUR SHAPE IN PLEASANT AND I LIKE YOUR CLOTHES (EVEN IF THEY AREN'T AS COOL AS MINE)."

She blushed harder, trying to walk further ahead and away from prying eyes, but Papyrus so easily kept up that she didn't think he even noticed what she was trying to do.

"YOUR SKIN IS SO SOFT AND SQUISHY, AND IS ALSO COVERED IN LOVELY HAIR"

"Papyrus, stop it! Plea-"

She was picked up again, as Papyrus smiled at her, "I ALSO LIKE YOUR BON-BONE STRUCTURE. BUT WHAT I REALLY LIKE IS Y-.OH!!" He dropped her, his eyes alight, "I'VE GOT IT! IT'S, 'TOO WISE YOU ARE, TOO WISE YOU BE, I SEE YOU ARE, TOO WISE FOR ME.'!"

He turned to her, grinning broadly at her and looking quite pleased with himself. Y/n had just finished brushing herself off from the ground, when she froze when she realised what the implications of Papyrus's correct answer meant for her. She looked slowly at him, his grin eager, "THIS MEANS WE CAN GO FOR OUR FRIENDSHIP MORNING RUN NOW!"

"Hazar" she muttered under her breath.

Papyrus grin shrank, as a thought occurred to him. He looked at her, guilty, "I'M AFRAID THAT WILL HAVE TO WAIT TILL TOMORROW. I NEED TO BE AT UNDYNE'S SOON AND I REALLY SHOULD RISK ANOTHER DISCIPLINE TRAINING SESSION LIKE LAST TIME."

He looked so pitiful, pulling his phone out to stare sadly at the clock.

She sighed bitterly, "Let's exchange numbers so that we can organise for tomorrow."

_'Damn me and my bleeding heart!'_

Papyrus gasped, a shimmer in his eyes, "HUMAN! YOU ARE TRULY A WONDERFUL FRIEND!!"

They switched phones, entering their numbers and contact details. With a sigh from Y/n and a beaming smile from him, they switched back.

"WELL, I MUST BE OFF. THANK YOU FOR THE WONDERFUL FRIENDSHIP MORNING MEANDER AND BRAIN PUZZLE, NEW FRIEND!!"

"Thank you for the tea Papyrus" She smiled back, genuinely happy about today...if not what was in store for her tomorrow.

He beamed back, jogging away. A thought occurred to her.

"Hey Papyrus!"

He jogged right back, "EAGER TO SEE ME AGAIN HUMAN? NOT THAT I BLAME YOU."

Resisting the urge to roll her eyes, she said, "I have another brain teaser for you. If you can text me the answer before tomorrow, I'll buy the next round of tea for our morning runs."

"NYEH HEH HEH! THE GREAT PAPYRUS ACCEPTS YOUR CHALLENGE!"

"Okay then. If someone said to you, " _I'll bet you $1 that if you give me $2, I'll give you $3 in return._ ", would this be a good bet for you to take?"

Papyrus narrowed his eyes, "GAMBLING IS WRONG Y/N, AND YOU SHOULD NEVER DO IT!"

"It's a riddle Papyrus, you're meant to try and figure out if it's a smart bet or not"

He continued to narrow his eyes, before he shrugged, "IT DOESN'T MATTER. POOR CHOICES OF FICTIONAL CHARACTERS IN A BRAIN TEASER WILL NOT PERSUADE THE GREAT PAPYRUS FROM ANSWERING THIS BRAIN TEASER!"

With a final wave, he ran away.

She was left feeling anxious about tomorrow, bitterly regretting her choice of a brain teaser.

_'That was a hard one, he wasn't meant to be able to solve it! I should have given him an impossible one!'_

Even as she thought that she realised that she wouldn't have done that, even if she knew he would get the answer.

~*~

Later that day, as she was closing her store for lunch, she received a text message:

THE GREAT PAPYRUS: Y/N, IT'S ME, THE GREAT PAPYRUS! WE SHOULD MEET TOMORROW FOR OUR MORNING RUN AT 5:00 AM-

"5:00 am?!"

\- AT THE SAME PLACE. BRING PLENTY OF WATER AND YOUR BEST EXERCISE GEAR (IT WON'T BE AS GOOD AS MINE, SO MAKE SURE YOU PREPARE YOURSELF FOR THE DISAPPOINTMENT!). ALSO, I BELIEVE I HAVE THE ANSWER TO YOUR RIDDLE, IS THIS RIGHT?

Of course it was correct.

 

Next chapter is called: Papyrus, the Sandwich Artist


	5. Papyrus, the Sandwich Artist

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Answer to riddle in Chapter 4: "No. You lose even if you win. The other person would take your $2 and say 'I lose', and give you $1 in return. You win the bet, but you're out $1.

 Breathing hurts. Moving hurts. Everything everywhere hurts.

And it was all Papyrus's fault!

Well that, and years of neglect...but mostly it was Papyrus's fault!

She groaned into her arms, her body slumped over by the cash register. If it wasn't for the fact she could barely move, she would have flipped her sign over, closing her store early today...but it was all the way over there...

Maybe she should just go to bed...but it was all the way up there...

Why must life be so hard?

"Hellllooo? You open?"

And it kept getting harder.

"No, we're closed! Go away, Matt!"

He laughed, disregarding her like he always did.

She felt the heat off the latest cup of coffee placed by her head, as he took to leaning on her napping table.

"So, you meet up with Papyrus yet?"

She groaned.

"Ah, I see that you did, and by the sounds of it he really let you have it."

_'What, no! He just made me run...should probably say that out loud...nah, too tried.'_

"Wow, not even a blush. Man, what did he do to you?"

Moving her head to one side, she muttered, "He made me run at 5 am this morning."

Matt whistled, "Wow! And how did that go?"

"Umm..."

<|>

_“I BELIEVE IN YOU HUMAN!”_

_"I'm *Gasp!*dying!"_

_Y/n looked to Papyrus, who easily kept up with her...while jogging backwards!_

_"NONSENSE HUMAN! WE'RE JUST GETTING WARMED UP!"_

_"This is a warm-up!?!"_

<|>

"It went....fine."

Matt laughed, "That's why you're collapsed on your register...because you're fine."

She groaned again, looking back at her elbow's groove.

"Seriously though, this guy must be some sort of miracle worker. Not only did he get you to leave your nest after what, two days, but he also got you out and running...in the morning?!"

He laughed again, much to her displeasure that her nap was getting interrupted for this mocking.

"He wants to do that every morning", she said, lustreless.

There was a pause, long enough for Y/n to actually raise her head to see what had made he stop laughing at her. He looked concerned and confused over whatever he was thinking. Seeing her looking at him, he straightened his face back into a smile, "And how do you feel about it?"

She cocked an eyebrow quizzically, so he continued, "Well, you went initially to figure out if you wanted to maintain a friendship. I say if the guy, after seeing you twice, is suggestion morning runs, that should give you a pretty good idea what the guy is going to be like."

He shrugged, "So, I ask again, how do you feel about continuing to see him?"

Her eyes slide past him, not really looking at anything as she thought about it. Pushing aside the fact she was sore, she had enjoyed talking to him, his upbeat personality, the weird way he saw the world, his total disregard for social norms...

But the jogging, the energy, the loud, self-centred confidence...

"I think he might be too much for me..." she said slowly.

Matt nodded, holding out his hand, "Need me to text him for you? Let him know gently?"

She looked at him, surprised. He knew how much she hated confrontation like this, but he always insisted that she needed the 'practice'. Him offering to do that was really kind of him...too kind.

"What's the catch.", she asked, suspiciously.

He shrugged, "No catch. You like the guy just fine, but just don't see yourself forming a long friendship." He rubbed the back of his head, "And maybe I'm feeling sorry for pushing you when your instincts were right."

She continued to look at him, before she pushed pen and paper towards him, "I'm curious how your message would go."

He rolled his eyes, taking the pen and scribbling out a message.

"Here, how's this?" he said, showing her the message.

_I really enjoyed talking with you the other day, but we're just two, very different types of people for it ever to work. I hope you can understand that and why I won't be joining you for any more runs or talks._

_-Y/n_

It was nice, polite and very gentle. If it had been her message, every other word would have been 'sorry'.

*CLING*

They both started, looking down at her phone as she pulled it out, with a new message from Papyrus himself.

Sighing, Y/n pulled up the message with Matt coming around to read over her shoulder.

 **The Great Papyrus:** HUMAN! I KNOW THAT YOU WORKED VERY HARD THIS MORNING AND I WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT I AM SO PROUD OF YOUR EFFORTS AND ACHIEVEMENTS!! AND YOU ONLY THREW-UP ONCE (YOU HAVE VERY GOOD AIM, BY THE WAY, HITTING THE TRASHCAN A MILE AWAY WAS VERY IMPRESSIVE!)!

I KNOW THAT I SAID THAT I WANTED TO SEE YOU EVERY DAY (AND I DO!!), BUT PETE SAYS THAT IT'S 'TOO MUCH, TOO SOON'. BUT I KNOW YOU CAN HANDLE ANYTHING HUMAN!! I BELIEVE IN YOU!! 

YOU SHOULD COME HERE! THEN I CAN COOK YOU THE PERFECT MEAL AND WE CAN HAVE A DELIGHTFUL DISCUSSION ON BRAIN PUZZLES! OH, PLEASE SAY YES!

"You're smiling" Matt said, confused.

Raising her hand to her face, she felt the gentle smile that had crept up while she read and reread Papyrus's message.

She laughed, "So I am."

Looking back at the message, she thought about the text she was about to send.

She stood up, startling Matt backwards, "I'm going to go see him." Looking at Matt's disbelieving expression, she shrugged, "He at least deserves something more than just a text message."

"And what are you going to do when you see him and your opinion doesn't change? Isn't that why you were going to text him because you have a hard time telling people things in person?"

She thought about it, then shrugged "Ehh, if it doesn't work, I can always send the text when I get back."

Looking back to her phone, she typed out and sent a text that asked what time and the address.

She didn't notice Matt leaving.

~*~

Y/n stood at the front entrance to 'Dining Room' cafe. It was a quaint place, surrounded by small shops, businesses and flowers, lots and lots of flowers, everywhere. She had lived in the nearby area her entire life but never knew about this secret little place. Not that finding it was hard, it was just tucked away, discreet and tasteful.

"Y/N! YOU'RE HERE!"

Before she could properly turn, she was being lifted into the air and spin around in circles...yet again.

"Hi Papyrus." she said with a soft laugh.

Papyrus placed her on the ground. With her feet firmly back on the ground, she noted his work clothes, dressed like a casual butler or a swank waiter. Black and white, with an apron tied around his narrow hips, he was pulling off the look quite well...wait, where did THAT thought come from?

"SO HUMAN, WHAT DO YOU THINK OF PLACE WHERE I COOK THE FINEST FOOD IN THE WORLD?" He waved at the cafe behind him with a grand gesture.

"Um, Papyrus, I'm not properly dressed" She looked down at her jeans and plain top. This was the kind of place where the women wore a long flowing sundress, bright colours and a toothy smile. Too bad she didn't have any of that.

Papyrus looked at her thoughtfully, nodding after a while, "PEOPLE AROUND HERE ARE NORMALLY WEARING MORE SHINNIES THAN YOU DO BUT-" he beamed at her, "I LIKE HOW YOU DRESS. IT SUITS YOUR FACE!"

Blushing, Y/n wasn't sure if he intended that to be a compliment or an insult. Either way, they were out in public and that had been a very honest answer.

"A-anyway, how did you know I was here? I just arrived."

"I SAW YOU THROUGH THE WINDOW!"

"The boy's been cleaning the same table for the past half an hour, looking out that window."

Y/n jumped, failing to notice the appearance of a man in loose-fitting clothes, dreadlocks pulled back into a ponytail and absolutely covered in tattoos.

He offered his hand to her, which she took after she recovered, "The name's Pete, and you must be Y/n, the friendly lady who likes tea and puzzles."

She blushed, looking anywhere but at the two men before her.

_'How often has Papyrus been talking about me while he should have of been working? What's he been saying about me to people here?'_

Papyrus spoke up, "SEE? I TOLD YOU SHE GOES RED QUITE OFTEN. ARE YOU SURE THAT'S DOESN'T MEAN SHE'S SICK?"

She buried her face in her hands while Pete laughed heartily; throwing his head back as his whole body shook.

"Oh Papyrus, my boy! You've got a lot to learn about humans, and even more about females in particular."

"BUT I'VE NEVER HAD ANY COMPLAINTS FROM MY CLIENTS! THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS ALWAYS TIPPED QUITE HANDSOMELY (WHICH IS TO BE EXPECTED BECAUSE I AM SIMPLY GORGEOUS) AND EVERYONE IS ALWAYS TAKING MY PHOTO."

Y/n felt her stomach drop. Of course, Papyrus would have a swam of admirers and be popular with everyone he met. He was the social butterfly after all, and she was the mildew growing quietly in the corner. What was she doing, trying to know him better?

 _'I should have texted.'_ she thought sadly.

Pete clapped, startling her out of her thoughts, "Now, I am running a business here, and it does me no good having a nice lady standing at the front of my cafe. Papyrus- "Papyrus stood a little straighter, "go escort Miss Y/n to our finest table."

Papyrus grinned, looking back at her, "BUT OF COURSE! ONLY THE BEST FOR MY FRIENDS, AND I KNOW THE PERFECT SPOT!"

He grabbed her hand and dragged her inside. The last she saw was Pete waving goodbye to her, a cheeky smile that went with his cheeky wave.

The inside smelled strongly of baked goods and savoury meats. The decor itself matched the cafe's outsides, creating a pleasant atmosphere that would have been perfect for reading a good book by a window.

Papyrus guided her to a table in the middle of the room, pulling out a chair, "HERE WE ARE! THE FINEST TABLE! FROM HERE, EVERYONE CAN SEE YOUR EVERY MOVE, THEIR ATTENTION INEVITABLE DRAWN TO YOUR SPLENDOUR!"

"Um Papyrus?" She looked around the cafe still blushing, many of the patrons smiled back as she met their eye, with quite a few of them giving her a thumbs-up.

He looked at her, confused, "HUMAN, YOU MUST ACTUALLY SIT IN THE CHAIR SO THAT I MAY PUSH YOU IN."

"Actually, I was wondering if you could place me by that window" she pointed to a small table that was fairly isolated, overlooking the front's garden.

Papyrus huffed, "BUT NOT EVERYONE WILL SEE YOU SITTING THERE!" He turned to her, "DON'T YOU WANT TO BE ADMIRED BY AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE?"

She shook her head, keenly aware that everyone in the cafe (including a few cooks who had popped their heads out to watch all the commotion) was staring at her and Papyrus.

"THAT'S STRANGE TO ME, BUT-" he posed, "IF MY NEW FRIEND WANTS TO SIT THERE, THAN I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, SHALL MAKE IT SO!"

He walked her over to the table, only this table had two fixed chairs with cushions, so he wasn't able to pull out her chair. At least, that was the reason she gave herself to explain why he looked sadly at the chairs.

He offered her a menu, "WHAT CAN THE MASTER CHIEF, THAT IS TO SAY ME, GET YOU TODAY?"

She grinned, looking over her menu, before she handed it back to Papyrus. "I'll have a tea and a simple Sandwich, please."

He nodded, "I'LL BE BACK BEFORE YOU KNOW IT!"

Then he ran off, heading for the kitchens.

"The boy's quite happy to see you here."

She looked away from Papyrus's retreating back to watch Pete approach her. She returned his polite smile, "I'm sure he's like this all the time."

Pete lost his smile, a slight frown forming, "You haven't known him long then, have you?" He gestured at the remaining chair, "May I?"

She nodded and Pete sat down with a heavy sigh. He looked to the kitchen and she followed his gaze; Papyrus was peeking around the kitchen's corner, watching them with narrowed eyes. When he saw that he had been caught, he quickly pulled his head away... only to poke it out again a few seconds later.

Pete laughed, "Expect your order to take some time, I'm afraid. The boy's normally much quicker than this but something seems to be slowing him down today."

She looked at her hands, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean for my presence to disturb your business. Please, don't think negatively about Papyrus for this."

Pete stuck out his hands, "Whoa girl, calm down!" He grinned, "If I couldn't handle a little chaos, I would have never hired the boy! I was just going to say how different the boy's become since he met you. Thought you'd like to know that."

She shrugged, "He sounds like he's always been popular, and I doubt that he hasn't always had this much energy."

Pete's eyes narrowed, "Popular for the wrong reasons." He sighed, "I've had to instil a 'no photos' policy because of all the gawking idiots who couldn't care less about Papyrus as a person, instead of treating him like a glorified Halloween display." He laughed, "And it hasn't been a walk in the park teaching the boy how to cook, believe me."

She grinned, "That bad?"

"You have no idea."

They shared a quiet chuckle.

"But seriously, the boy's changed. Now he's taking an interest in others, without it necessarily coming back to him. I think he likes hearing someone else compliment him for once, rather it being his own voice."

"Doesn't he get that here?"

He shrugged, "Not really. My clients and employees talk to him just fine and all, and he does have a good relationship with them, but it's always just small talk." He looked away sadly at Papyrus, who was now visibly clanging around in the kitchen, "humans can be off put by his eccentric personality. Frankly, I think he's quite lonely."

She didn't say aloud that she found that idea ridicules, so she asked "What about other monsters?"

"If they're talking to him, he doesn't talk about them here" He grinned at her, "seriously, all we've heard from him since two weeks ago was about the nice lady who got him a tea."

She blushed, looking out the window, "It was just a dumb tea." _'And I sure wish people stopped treating it like it's the act of a saint.'_

"Maybe to you, but to him it was proof that humans want to talk to him. Besides, if he's the social butterfly I know you think he is, then why do you think he was jogging alone?"

She looked back at him, surprised she hadn't considered that before.

Pete stood up with a grunt of effort, "It was a pleasure to me you and oh-!" he turned to face her, "You haven't met Sans, Papyrus's brother, yet have you?"

She shook her head.

Pete grimaced, "Well, Sans is quite protective about Papyrus and I'm sure he's heard all about you by now." He shrugged, "Expect a grilling session when you meet and to be found wanting. That one-" he lowered his gaze, "is a hard one to get him to warm up to you."

He left, with that ominous warning.

She looked out the window, think back on all Pete had said about Papyrus. To her, the concept that someone this easy going and extroverted struggling to make friends upon friends was a foreign concept. It just didn't make any sense to her!

Really, what was so different about her that warranted all this change (if he had indeed changed). Just because the timing of it placed her as the reason for change, didn't make it so. Maybe there was something else, something much more important and dramatic, something that Pete didn't know that had happened in the background of Papyrus's life? For the sake of argument, it had only been the third time she met him, today being the fourth, and she was expected to believe she might be the cause?

Papyrus came over with her tea and sandwich, all smiles. He placed the order before her, before he stood back, toying with the serving tray nervously.

Y/n, meanwhile, was looking from the beautifully presented tea and sandwich to a shy Papyrus. Who knew that Papyrus was capable of being shy? Finally, something they had in common!

She gestured to the spare chair, "Will you join me Papyrus?"

He blushed, bringing the tray up to cover most of his face, "I REALLY SHOULD BE WORKING."

Before she could say anything, he lowered the tray, his expression brightening, "BUT IF YOU INSIST!" He yelled in the direction towards the kitchen, "MR PETE! I'M GOING ON MY LUNCH BREAK!!"

Pete yelled back, unseen, "What?! But you've never gone on a lunch break!"

Papyrus rubbed the back of his skull, yelling back "IS THAT OKAY?!"

"Of course it is you numbskull! Tell me if she likes it or not, and make sure she becomes a regular customer!"

"YOU CAN COUNT ON ME!" he beamed, sitting down opposite of her.

"You don't take lunch breaks?"

"THE GREAT PAPYRUS HAS NO NEED FOR BREAKS!"

"But you do take them, right?"

"WHY WOULD I TAKE BREAKS IF I DON'T NEED THEM?" He looked genuinely confused.

Realising that this was a road she did not want to travel, she instead took a sip of her tea.

Then she took another.

"Papyrus, this is the best tea I've ever had!"

He beamed, "BUT OF COURSE IT IS! IT IS MY OWN BLEND FROM OTHER TEAS, AFTER ALL!" he posed with a hand to his chest, "I SAW HOW MUCH YOU ENJOYED TEAS AND FIGURED OUT THE PERFECT BLEND FOR YOU, TO CREATE THE PERFECT TEA! I THINK I'LL CALL IT, 'PERFECT PAPYRUS'."

She felt a warm, fuzzy emotion sweep through her as the idea of Papyrus putting in so much effort for her genuinely made her happy. She could feel a huge, goofy smile on her face, which Papyrus mirrored.

Eager, she pushed her plate towards him, "Papyrus, have lunch with me."

"BUT I COULDN'T HAVE ONE OF YOUR SANDWICHES!" He gasped "NO, YOU EAT IT ALL AND ENJOY THE MEAL I'VE PREPARED FOR JUST FOR YOU!"

Still smiling, she crossed her arms, refusing to move. He looked uncomfortable at the idea but eventually he relented with a frustrated sigh "HUMAN, WHY MUST YOU MAKE ME DO THIS?"

She grabbed the last slice with a smile, "But Papyrus, it's important to try new things. It's how I met you after all." She took a bite, with a smug smile.

Papyrus froze, a sandwich half-way to his open mouth, a slow spread of an orange glow illumining his cheeks. Then his face fell as he watched her stop chewing, staring at him in disbelief.

"IS SOMETHING WRONG? WHY HAVE YOU STOPPED EATING?" he opened up the sandwich, filing through the ingredients, "I KNEW I SHOULD HAVE MADE A PASTA SANDWICH! OH WHY DIDN'T I LISTEN TO MY INFALLIBLE WISDOM!!"

"I love this!"

He gaped in shock "YOU DO?!"

She nodded quickly, devouring the rest of her sandwich, "Think I'll come back for lunch as often as I can!"

Papyrus started at her, jaw opened wide.

"How does she like her food?!" Pete called from somewhere in the shop.

Papyrus stood up, arms wide and crowed, "SHE LOVES IT!"

 

Next chapter is called: Booking it

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, if you're happen to be reading this and thinking 'but they said they'd update once a month and I find out there's two chapters now?', I still plan on updating on the first Saturday of each month. It's just, if I get the time, I can do that twice. Basically, if it's a Sunday in the middle of the month and there isn't an update, then I missed the chance and I'll keep it for later (keeping to Saturday makes it easier for me...hope you can understand that=)
> 
> Having said that, X-Mas/Giftmas is here! I most likely won't be updating because none of my stories are ready for Giftmas and it feels weird typing when I'm staring at tinsel. Also, my B-day's happens in early January and I want to binge play some games I've been putting off =P
> 
> Regardless, whatever you celebrate, I hope you have a wonderful time off in the company of your loved loves.
> 
> See you in January!
> 
> Oh, and here's something that you all know, but should be said often; you guys rock! I LIVE for the feedback/nice things you say and all that stuff!!!! It makes me 'over the moon-happy' to read and reread everything! You guys are my fuel, my inspiration to keep trying and to, perhaps, believe in myself...for once.
> 
> Words can't really convey how much I appreciate all the comments.


	6. Booking it

The next day, Y/n could be found anxiously pouring over a stack of brain teaser books, a notebook and pen off to the side. Papyrus was still waiting for his next brain puzzle so that “WE CAN GO ON OUR NEXT FRIENDSHIP MORNING RUN!” She, unable to say no to his puppy eyes, had said she needed time to think of a challenging enough brain teaser (that would buy her time). His only reaction to hearing this excuses any other person would have called her out was to stand there posing, saying confidently, “WHY OF COURSE HUMAN! YOU MUST FIND THE PERFECT PUZZLE TO CHALLENGE MY MAGNIFICENT SELF. I, IN TURN, MUST THINK OF THE PERFECT EXERCISE REGIMENT TO CHALLENGE YOU AND PUSH YOU TO YOUR LIMITS! DO NOT WORRY Y/N, I WILL THINK OF THE MOST AMAZING EXERCISE SCHEDULE THAT WILL BE SURE TO WHIP YOU INTO SHAPE!”

So now here she was, desperately looking through all the books she could get (which was a lot, considering the state of her cash register). To add to her anxiety, it was the start of Christmas season and her store was busy. She was juggling answering customer questions, researching brain teasers in every spare moment and debating whether or not to give Papyrus a gift.

Her main concern was that monsters didn’t celebrate Christmas and not wanting to push a human holiday on him, or make him feel obligated to get her something in return. On the other hand, what if he did get her something and she hadn’t gotten him anything? She didn’t want to stand there, searching for something in her bag she could give as a gift while he looked at her in eager anticipation. That scenario had quickly become a recurring nightmare for her. Eventually, after much consideration, she had found the perfect book for him at 4 am the next day, which was now tucked under the desk with lazy bow and ribbon tied around it. Now, if she so happened to see him, she was prepared, no matter what he did or didn’t do!

Christmas always gave her an ulcer and this year was so much worse.

 _‘At least I’ve got everyone else’s present already brought.’_ She thought, glad she was the type of person who did the Christmas shopping in October and November. Or at least, she was, till Papyrus came into her life.

Her front store’s bell jingled, bringing her out from her thought and research.

In walked a short grinning skeleton, wearing a blue hoodie.

Her mind instantly went to Papyrus, remember that he had a brother called Sans (…she might be wrong about that).

“Hi, are you-?”

_‘Really? You’re going to assume this guy is related to Papyrus just because he’s a skeleton?’_

The skeleton stared at her, a grin still present on his face as he waited for her to finish that sentence.

She coughed, trying again, “Are you looking for a book?”

_‘Smooth.’_

The skeleton shrugged, “sorta”. His grew larger, “i’m actually here with a friend.”

“You idiot!”

The skeleton stood smoothly to the side, just as her shop's door swung open hard, bashing into the wall.  Y/n jolted with misery, thinking about that impact had on both her door and wall.

There stood a tall, fish monster, wearing an eye path with her long red hair tied back. Instant recognition hit Y/n, but before she could greet the newcomer, the fish monster rounded of the skeleton, “If you bothered to wait for me or listen to me, I would've told ya that I’ve already been here before!”

A few of her customers quickly left while the skeleton looked at the fish monster in disbelief, “really? you’ve been to this bookstore?” he grinned, “i don’t know what i find more amazing; the coincidence or the fact you’ve entered a bookstore.”

“Shut it bonehead!”

The fish monster wheeled on her and Y/n instantly shrank back, “Hello Shopkeep! How’s business?”

“Um.” She looked around, noticing a few more customers haphazardly leaving quickly, “It's f-fine. Thank you for asking” then she remembered what book they had brought, “Did that textbook help your friend?”

The fish monster roared, slapping the cash register desk multiple times, “That dumb book? Arrogant humans professors wanted her to read the whole thing and have it memorised in two weeks! Not only did my girl manage it that night, but she found it, and I quote, “ _Awfully simple and with a lacklustre understanding of the applied principles_ ”!” The fish monster whipped away a stray tear, “I’ve never been prouder!”

“Glad to hear it. I hope she at least liked the other books?”

“Loved them! Still got them at home and everything!” The fish monster turned the skeleton, who was watching from the back, casually looking over the nearby books, “You can stop worrying, this one’s a good one! Heck, if I remembered the store name, I would have told you that sooner!”

Noticing her confusing, the fish monster clarified, “He’s worried that you’re a greedy shop owner who’s just out for monster gold.”

Y/n nodded, “I remember you said something like that last time.”

The fish monster nodded, “Yeah, most humans just assume that all monsters are rich.”

“Well, aren’t you?”

Y/n could tell right away that she had just stuck her foot in her mouth. The fish monster’s expression fell, turning into a glare, but it was better than the skeleton's, whose eye lights had vanished and his entire expression darkening (despite his smile, which just added to the creepiness).

“Want to explain yourself human?”

She met the fish’s monster hard stare and harder question with pure nerves of a pillow, “I-I was j-just thinking th-that mon-monsters are r-rich because of the wh-whole ‘gold’ economy thing. W-wouldn’t y-you make a-a lot of money in th-the stockm-market?”

The fish monster’s expression brightened, “Oh, that human money thing!” She grinned, “Nah, our king and the humans talked it out and decided on something that wouldn’t crash that whatever it’s called.” She leant forward, “Is that why humans think we’re all rich?”

“I-I imagine so” she nodded quickly.

Grinning, the fish monster turned to the skeleton, noticing his still dark expression, “Knock it off already. I told you, she isn't one of the 'bad ones' yah know?.”

His expression returned to his previous smile, as he shrugged, “whatever you say captain” he ended with a salute and a wink.

The fish monster glared at him.

Y/n coughed, bringing the attention back to her. “So, um, what can I help you with today?”

The fish monster grinned, “Nah, we-.“

“we’re looking for a book for a friend for gyftmas.”

Y/n and the fish monster looked at the skeleton, though probably for different reasons.

He grinned, “we’re wondering if we describe the guy to you, you’d recommend a good book.”

Y/n rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly, “If I’m really honest, buying a book for someone is a really hard thing to do.” She looked at the two monsters, “I mean, I love books, but it’s really easy to buy me a book that I’d hate. I’d much rather you brought him something else than ruining someone’s potential love for reading on a bad gift.”

“Are you recommending we shop somewhere else?” the fish monster asked in disbelief.

"Unless you know for certain he’d like the book, yea.”

The two monsters stared at her in disbelief, before the fish monster threw her head back, roaring with laughter while the skeleton’s grin grew. The last of her customers fled quickly.

“Hahahaaa hah ha! Oh that’s rich!” the fish monster turned to the skeleton, “Didn’t I tell you, you had nothing to fear?!”

The skeleton smiled, before he looked back to Y/n, “how about you give us some recommendations and let us worry about that?”

Y/n sighed but nodded. Then she realised that the monster had said ‘Gyftmas’ not ‘Christmas’.

“Can I ask what is Gyftmas?”

The fish monster beamed while the skeleton monster continued to look around the store, “Gyftmas is basically like your human holiday, Christmas, but with a different origin.” She shrugged, “It’s a monster holiday where we give each other gifts. Since we’ve came to the surface, the tradition has focused on getting each other surface items, things we couldn’t get underground.”

“Hence getting a human book?”

“sure, why not?” answered the skeleton, coming back over to stand next to the fish monster.

The fish monster grinned impishly. “Now, I know for a fact that this guy is really looking for a good book he can curl up in bed with!” The skeleton nudged her, not looking too pleased with the statement.

Completely mystified and sure they were sharing some sort of inside joke, Y/n smiled politely, “I may need more than that.”

Still snicking, the fish monster continued, “Well, he’s an energetic guy who just loves to try new things with 110% effort.”

Y/n thought about it, stepping away from her cash register and leading the pair down an aisle. Squatting, she pulled out a book, handing this to the fish monster, “This book has about 1000 things a person could try, ranging from physical challenges to various arts and craft projects.” She shrugged, “If he reads this and tries a few things, I’m sure he’ll discover a few new things he didn’t know he’d like and can pursue it in more details.”

“Really?” she already had the book open, looking over the illustrations on the martial arts section.

Nodding, Y/n turned to the skeleton, who shrugged, “he’s just a really cool guy. The best person you’ll ever meet really.”  He said that with so much affection.

Smiling politely, she asked, “Well, does he have any interests?”

“he like cooking and puzzles.”

“Ah!” This she knew inherently well, having just this morning been pouring through all her cooking and puzzle books.

Leading him to the cooking aisle, and leaving behind the fish monster who was still reading the book, Y/n gestured to all her cooking books. “It really depends on what he likes to cook if you’re hoping for a specific book.” She shrugged, “Or you can get a general book, varying from a beginner's approach to five-star quality meals.”

The skeletons monster shrugged, “ever since he came to the surface, he just loves cooking.” He didn’t seem too invested in getting any of these books.

“How about a puzzle book instead?”

Seeing no sign of complaint, she lead him to her small puzzle section, currently missing its brain teasers. She gestured to the puzzles and models, “If you want to try something different, then a model might be the way to go. In my experience, people who like puzzles often enjoy models. Although, if you’re looking for a real challenge, I do sell the Impossible Puzzle; puzzles with no edge and five extra, fake pieces.”

“sounds quite _puzzling_.”

She grinned, before gesturing to her empty shelf, “I’m afraid, if you’re after a brain teaser book, I’ve got them all by the cash register.”

“what are they doing there?" he asked, curious.

“I’m just doing some research for a friend actually.”

She led him back to her cash register, presenting her books. She noticed how his eyes slide to her notebook, probably noting the pages she had already written.

“I’ve got about everything here, picture puzzles to lateral thinking challenges.”

He pawed over one of the books, only mildly interested.

Looking at him now, he had become her new puzzle; a difficult customer that she loved to really think about what type of book he’d like. Added difficulty because this book wasn’t for him, but some unknown customer.

From what she knew, the mystery guys liked puzzles and cooking (something monsters had in common?). There were plenty books of the two, but none of them had jumped out at her and he hadn’t been interested while browsing. Then she thought about what he first said to her when he first had been describing the guy

_“he’s just a really cool guy. The best person you’ll ever meet really.”_

Anyone who could inspire that type of affection at a mere description had to be an awesome person, someone who meant the world to the skeleton.

_‘Reminds me of Papyrus, particularly how loyal Pete was to him.’_

An idea occurred to her.

She reached under her counter, pulling out the book for Papyrus, tearing off the lazy bow and ribbon. The skeleton watched her, curious again.

She handed this book to him. If this guy meant that much to him, then it was worth seeing if this book worked.

“This book talks about cooking like it’s a matter of uniting the right person to the right dish, asking the reader to consider the type of person about to eat the meal and makes recommendations based upon that understanding.” She looked at the book, “He wrote this book from his love of seeing people really enjoy a meal and the type of atmosphere the perfect meal generates.”

The skeletons opened the book, actually reading through a few pages. “what about the person this book was for?” he was obviously referring to the bow and ribbon.

She shrugged, “I can always order a new book” _‘Or go to one of my competitors’_.  She grinned, “If it’s the perfect book for this guy, then I want you to have it. He obviously means the world to you and hopefully, he’ll like it.”

The skeleton froze, stuck in mid browsing motion, before he looked up at her, his eyes calculating.

“If you’re done investigating, I think it’s time we leave.” The fish monster came over, pushing her book on the cash register.

“So, you’re happy with the book?” Y/n asked, scanning the book.

She grinned. “Absolutely! I know he’ll love all that physical stuff. Might even try a few with the dweeb.”

Y/n grinned, truly happy that she seemed to have found a good match. She turned to look at the skeleton, who was still looking at the book, thoughtful. “If he doesn’t like the books, be sure to tell him he can return here for a full refund or a different book.”

The skeleton looked up, while the fish monster laughed, “You don’t know how to run a business, do you Shopkeep?”

She shrugged. “If he returns, I can sell him a book directly.” She handed the monsters their books, “After all, I got you two to buy books, didn’t I?”

They stared at her, and she could tell they were questioning whether or not if they just had been had.

_‘Let them question it. I’m sure they’ve met plenty of humans who have given them reasons to doubt.’_

Now she was aware of Gyftmas, she found herself actually eager to give Papyrus a gift.

 _‘Hopefully, he’ll be pleasantly surprised.’_ she thought while smiling, further confusing the two monsters.

~*~

“Yea, I’m afraid Papyrus’s home today.”

Y/n stared in disbelief at Pete, who was smiling at her behind his cash register. After the monster had paid for their books and she had searched other local bookshops for a replacement, she came right here, determined to surprise Papyrus with a Gyftmas present before she could rethink it again.

 _‘I should have asked when Gyftmas was.’_ she thought again with the bitterness of hindsight.

Now here she was, staring at Pete, who’s mischief eyes eyed her bag with a knowing grin.

“I thought he worked today?”

Pete grinned broader, “He sure does. But the boy asked today off so he could prepare a feast for Gyftmas.”

“You know about that?”

He laughed, “Boy’s been talking about nothing else.”  He waggled his eyebrows, “Except perhaps what a pretty lady might like.”

She blushed, burying her face in her hands while Pete laughed, “Told ya, the boy’s been talking about you. Made me swear and everything to not say a word about Gyftmas or Christmas.”  He returned to his slouched position on the countertop, “Surprised you didn’t get my hints about it yesterday, actually.”

Fetching the hastily wrapped present, she offered it to Pete, “How about I give you this and you hand it to him when he comes back in?”

Pete waved his hands, taking a step back, “Naw girl, not happening. If it’s so important that Papyrus get this gift, why don’t you give it to him yourself?”

She looked down at the present, analysing her current situation. She had barely known Papyrus for long and here she was, standing like a fool in a store with a present she now highly doubted he’d actually like. What had she been thinking, coming here? She should have stuck with the plan and wait for Papyrus to spring on her with whatever he had was planning.

“Forget it.” She muttered, putting away the present. She knew this was a stupid idea.

“Now wait a second!”

She looked up and saw Pete’s expression had darkened.

He wagged a finger at her, “Now, don’t you go and second guess yourself there. Man, you two can be so irritating.”

“I’m sorry?” she said, confused.

“Don’t be sorry! Be confident and stop second guessing yourselves! If you came here, you’re obviously stocked that you knew about Gyftmas and wanted to give the boy a gift. So, do just that and damn the consequences!”

“But,” she spluttered, “he isn’t here right now. I-I’ll just come back tomorrow or something.”

Pete reached under the countertop, pulling out a menu. With a nearby pen, he scribbled something on before he handed over the mean to her. Looking down at it, she saw he had given her an address.

Staring at it, not quite believing her eyes, she looked up and asked, “Isn’t that illegal? What about employee confidentiality?”

He shrugged, entirely uncaring. “Now, you go there and hand him your present before you second guess yourself.”

“But didn’t you said he asked for today off so that he could prepare?” She said, trying to convince Pete that this was a terrible idea.

“I know he’ll be stoked to see ya girl. And it’s not like you’re doing anything more than just handing him a present.” He waved his hand, "He'll be fine."

She tried again to make Pete see reason, “But he’s going to think it’s creepy that I know where he lives!”

Rolling his eyes, he pulled out his phone, tapping quickly at the screen. After he done whatever had taken him five seconds to do, he placed his phone on the countertop, looking back at her.

“Um, what was-“

The phone buzzed.

Pete looked down at his phone, reading. “Papyrus’s expecting you at his house in the next five minutes.”

“He’s what!?” she gaped at him, “Why would you tell him something like that?!”

Pete shrugged, pointing to his phone, “Want me to tell him you’ve changed your mind?”

She hesitated and Pete’s smile grew, “Notice how you hesitate? That tells me you really want Papyrus to have that gift, tells me you spent a really long time thinking and rethinking what the perfect gift might be just for him.” He shrugged, “It’d be a shame to waste that just because of your nerves. And I can guarantee the boy’s going to love seeing you there.”

“But this feels so wrong.” she mumbled, awkwardly.

“Does it feel wrong or uncomfortable?”

“What’s the difference?”

“It’s the difference between your morals and your feelings.”

She stared at this strange, enigma of a man.

Her phone buzzed.

Pulling it out, she read:

 **The Great Papyrus:** HUMAN! I AM DELIGHTED THAT YOU ARE COMING OVER!!! PETE SAYS HE’S GIVEN YOU MY ADDRESS, BUT I WANT TO MAKE SURE IT’S CORRECT, SO HERE IT IS AGAIN (2 MONSTER STREET, YOUR CITY)!! SEE YOU SOON =)!!

She looked up to see Pete smiling softly at her, “What’s the worse that happens? You go there, feel uncomfortable and make Papyrus’s day by simply showing up?”

~*~

Staring up at the house, menu in hand, Y/n noted that it hadn’t taken her long to travel here from the Dining Room.

_‘Now it’s just a matter of actually knocking on the door.’_

She had been staring at the door for a while now. Every time she thought about knocking on the door, loud banging and crashing sounds, often accompanied by equally loud shouting could be heard emanating from the house. Just when it quietened down and she had worked her nerves up to knock again, the cycle would start anew.

No matter how often she checked the menu or Papyrus’s text, the address didn’t change.

Hoping against hope, she backed away from the house, sitting instead on the curb outside and tried texting Papyrus. If he really lived here, he’d come out to greet her, and if he just happened to live somewhere else, then she didn’t need to interrupt whatever all the yelling was about.

No sooner had she sent the text than the house’s door behind her explode open.

“Well, look who it is! Shopkeep!”

Still somewhat clenching, Y/n turned around in disbelief to stare at the fish monster she meet earlier today, her customer from this morning!

Before she could say anything (if she was even capable of doing that), the fish monster came barrelling down, lifting her up in a back cracking hug.

“I am so happy you’re here bookworm!”

Carrying her under one arm, Y/n was brought into the house.

“Papyrus! I’ve got you another book!”

Papyrus came out from another room, wearing an apron with flame decorations that stated ‘Hot stuff coming through’. Y/n could only stare.

“ANOTHER BOOK? REALLY? WHAT’S WITH- Y/N!!!”

She was torn from the fish’s underarm and pulled into a tight embrace, a familiar spinning sensation that left her wobbly on her feet.

She looked up at Papyrus’s beaming face, “PETE SAID YOU WERE COMING OVER, BUT I DIDN’T UNDERSTAND WHY, BUT I QUICKLY FORGOT ABOUT THAT BECAUSE YOU WERE COMING OVER AND I WAS SO EXCITED!!” He looked around the room, “IS TODAY MY BIRTHDAY!? THIS IS THE GREATEST DAY EVER, IT JUST HAS TO BE!!” He gasped, turning to face Undyne, “IS TODAY ‘PAPYRUS DAY’?! DID THE KING FINALLY ACCEPT MY PROPOSAL!?!”

“every day with you is a holiday paps.”

She turned to face the short skeleton from this morning, leaning back on the coach she hadn’t noticed while being carried in.

The skeleton stood up, offering his hand, “hi there again shopkeep, i’m sans, sans the skeleton.”

She grabbed his hand slowly, still somewhat confused, “Hi, I’m-“

*pfffffffbbltt*

She looked down at amazement, noticing the soft squishy texture that the farting noise had come from.

Sans pulled off the whoopie cushion, a huge grin on his face.

“SANS! THAT WAS EXTREMELY RUDE!”

Sans shrugged, his attention solely focused on Y/n and her blushing face, “sorry bro, couldn’t resist.”

Papyrus huffed, “WELL, I’D LIKE IT IF YOU COULD KEEP YOUR PRANKS AND PUNS TO YOURSELF FOR ONCE!” He gestured at Y/n, “WE HAVE A VERY SPECIAL GUEST AND I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A GOOD IMPRESSION!”

Undyne grinned, “Bet you’d love to get in there and leave a bookmark.”

Burying her face, beyond modified, Y/n heard Papyrus confused reply, “SHE’S NOT A BOOK UNDYNE. HOW MANY TIMES ARE YOU GOING TO IMPLY THAT?”

“yea undyne, you really need to stop.” Sans’s tone was hard and flat.

Undyne scoffed, “Whatever dweebs, deny the inevitable. Alphys and I have bets about the timeframe, not the possibility, for a reason.”

Y/n looked up to see Undyne walking away, a phone held up to her face, “Babe, I’m changing my bet. I’m predicting sooner than later. You should see her-“

“i swear, that fish.”

She turned around to see Sans glowering after Undyne. Apparently noticing her, Sans returned his expression to his default smile.  “thanks for the book recommendation kid. he really liked it.” He nodded his towards Papyrus, “actually trying a few of them out right now.”

“THAT WAS HER BOOKSHOP YOU WENT TO!?”

Her heart falling, Y/n realised that she couldn’t give her present now, not if Sans had already bet her to it. She barely noticed the glare that Papyrus threw at Sans or Sans's casual shrug reply.

“Is it Gyftmas soon then?” she asked, tone now noticeable lower.

Papyrus threw a final glare at Sans, before he brightly replied, “GYFTMAS IS ABOUT GIVING EACH OTHER GIFTS WHEN YOU SEE SOMETHING THAT SOMEONE WILL REALLY LIKE.” He posed, “FOR A WHOLE MONTH, MONSTERS SPEND THAT TIME THINKING ABOUT WHAT THE PEOPLE IN THERE LIVES MEAN TO THEM, AND WAYS THEY CAN SHOW THAT AFFECTION. SOME MONSTERS SPEND THE WHOLE MONTH SHOPPING, OTHERS SPEND IT ON MAKING ONE THING.” He looked fondly at his bookshelves, “IT’S ABOUT THE THOUGHT THAT WENT INTO THE GIFT, NOT HOW MANY PRESENTS YOU BUY OR HOW EXPENSIVE IT WAS.”

Sans grinned, “any day, during this month, you could receive a gift at any moment.” He shrugged, “which i think makes the whole holiday extra special. it’s about random acts of kindness, rather than one big event.”

She looked over at Papyrus, “I was told you’re preparing a feast though?”

“OH, I AM! BUT IT ISN’T SET ON ANY SPECIFIC DAY.” He shrugged, “I KNOW SOME MONSTERS WHO WILL HAVE IT ON YOUR CHRISTMAS DAY, OTHERS WHO WILL HAVE MULTIPLE FEATS. WE’RE HAVING OURS TOMORROW CAUSE THAT WHEN THE DREEMURRS CAN GET HERE.” He brightened, grabbing her shoulders, “Y/N! YOU SHOULD COME OVER TOMORROW FOR THE FEAST!! ALL THE BEST PEOPLE I KNOW WILL BE THERE, AND THAT’S SAYING A LOT BECAUSE I AM VERY POPULAR AND BELOVED BY MANY ADMIRING CROWDS!”

Nope, this was too much, too overwhelming!

She backed up and moved towards the front door, feeling herself breaking out into a sweat, her breathing and heart rate quickening.

“S-sorry P-Pap-yrus. I-I’ve got t-to go.”

“Y/N! WHERE-?“

She closed the door behind her, quickly strolling away and fighting back tears. Tears of shame that she couldn’t stand the idea of meeting so many new people, tears of frustration at her weakness, tears because that’s what weak people like her did.

“WAIT!”

She turned to see Papyrus running after her, a hand behind his back. She furiously rubbed her eyes, hoping it didn’t look like she was on the verge of crying.

“WHY DID YOU LEAVE LIKE THAT? WAS IT BECAUSE MY BROTHER SAID SOMETHING TO YOU?”

She looked up, surprised, to see Papyrus narrowing his eyes back at his house. Following that direction she saw the front curtains pushed aside, Sans and Undyne peering after them.

“No, it wasn’t them.” she looked away with a heavy sigh.

“WAS IT ME? DID I DO SOMETHING WRONG?” Papyrus asked, surprising her with how quietly he asked.

She looked up sharply, “No!” Meeting his sad eyes was painful, so she instead focused on her shoes, “It’s me.”

“I DON’T UNDERSTAND.”

“Papyrus, I’m not like you. You’re so bold and confident, and you always have this raw energy and positive personality that makes hanging out with you so much fun-”

If she had been looking up, she would have seen Papyrus blush, looking away while rubbing the back of his skull with a huge smile.

“But to me, the idea of meeting so many new people, all at once. I can’t, I don’t-.“ She trailed off lamely.

Looking up at him, she noticed something poking out from behind him. Something brightly decorated, most likely a present.

“And to top it off, I didn’t get you anything” she mumbled, thinking of the book he already had.

“OH.”

They stood there awkwardly.

She pulled out her notebook, the one with all the brainteasers in it. Clearing her throat, she said, “I’m ready to give you a new brain teaser now.” She was so close to tears, but she was determined to hold out and wait till she gave Papyrus her stupid teaser.

“WHAT’S THIS?”

Papyrus reached over and plucked the book from her hands. He flipped through the pages, noting her child-like handwriting and lame teasers that a dumb person like her would think were clever.

He held the book open with one hand, gesturing to it with the other, “IS THIS FILLED WITH BRAIN TEASERS FOR ME?”

“Yes.” she mumbled, refusing to look him in the eye.

He looked at the notebook again, flipping through the pages, before he handed it back to her.

“PLEASE WAIT HERE.” Then he was off, running back into his house.

She stood the awkwardly, keenly aware that even the spying monsters had gone by then.

_‘Probably couldn’t stand watching the sad girl anymore.’_

This was the worst idea she had ever had. Why did she listen to Pete? Why did she think this would work out?

Why had she ever gone back to meet Papyrus again?

Some sort of paper was pushed into her view. Looking up, she saw that Papyrus had returned and it was him who was holding out the paper to her.

He shook the paper, “READ THESE, PLEASE.”

Confused, she took one of the sheets of paper and looked at it. It appeared to be a schedule, listing a two to three hours time period, breaking every minute into different sections. Some of those sections had walking, other had run, jump, climb, weights and a great number things one could do with their body (if you hated the idea of comfort).

Baffled now, she looked up at Papyrus, who was watching her nervously, “IT’S YOUR FRIENDSHIP MORNING RUN WORK OUT SCHEDULES. I’VE BEEN WORKING ON IT SINCE YESTERDAY.”

She looked down at the sheet, “My friendship morning workouts?”

He brightened “OH, THAT’S JUST ONE DAY!” he shook the remaining papers in his hand, “I’VE NEARLY DONE THE NEXT YEAR, BUT I RAN OUT OF TIME.”

“A whole year!”

Papyrus had planned a whole year of body breaking, soul-destroying exercise regiment for her!

…Papyrus had planned to see her for at least a whole year, and he had done all this last night?

She looked up at him, tears now flowing from her eyes.

“OH NO! I’VE MADE YOU CRY!” he looked around desperate, “I’M SORRY HUMAN! DON’T WORRY, I’LL FIND THE NEAREST FLUFFY ANIMAL TO COMFORT YOU! CURSES! WHY MUST MY ONE FLAW BE MY LACK OF FUR!”

She hugged him, startling him from his search. Slowly, he looked down at her face, tears sliding down her cheeks.

“Thank you Papyrus!”

He looked really uncomfortable and confused, so she quickly let him go, watching his face blush.

“Sorry” she mumbled, whipping her eyes.

Before she knew what was happening, Papyrus had his arms wrapped around her, lowering himself so that he could hug her without lifting her.

“DO NOT BE SORRY HUMAN. THE FACT THAT YOU HAVE SO MANY WONDERFUL BRAIN TEASERS FOR ME, SHOWS ME THAT YOU REALLY LIKE HANGING OUT WITH ME AND WHAT TO KEEP DOING SO.” He pulled away, looking down at her, “THIS IS MY FAVOURITE GYFTMAS PRESENT YET.”

She looked away, trying to subtly whip away her tears, “The fact that you're planning an exercise schedule for a whole year, that you want to see me for a whole year is the best present I could have gotten.”

She looked back at him, “Happy Gyftmas Papyrus.”

He beamed, “HAPPY GYFTMAS Y/N.”

 

Next chapter is called: Cooking exposure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if I bastardised Gyftmas for you. I’ve always liked the idea that the monsters celebrate their own version of Christmas, just a bit different. Let me know what you thought and, as always, any feedback/comments are greatly appreciated!
> 
> Now, I suck at drawing, but it's something I wish I could do. So, rather than just complain about it, I thought I would ATTEMPT it, to actually try and get better. But what to draw? Why inflict my sad drawings on someone else's work.....
> 
> I know! I'll draw the main scene for the next chapters for all my stories! Yea, and I'll put them up on tumblr in the next few days, that way, even as they hurt people's eyes, people might enjoy guessing what the next chapter might be like? Sort of like a horrible game of Pictionary?
> 
> They'll be on my tumblr and if you have any advice, please let me know!
> 
> Or, if you have any questions/anything really, let me know, okay?
> 
>  
> 
> Oh! And Happy Gyftmas! See you all in the New Year!


	7. Cooking exposure

Any more friendship morning runs had to wait till after New Year’s Day. Papyrus had his feast the next day, which would make seeing her in the morning difficult as he was expecting people to fly in (although he had tried to make it work, she had insisted otherwise) and Y/n was closing her store for a few weeks so she could spend time with her family. They agreed to meet on the first Saturday in the new year, to start the year fresh.

 _‘Yet Papyrus seems distracted.’_ Y/n thought, looking over at him as he sipped his tea, walking alongside her in the morning light. He was much quieter than she expected him to be; he had barely gone into much detail over what he had been up to during the weeks she had last seen him. From what she expected from him, he didn’t seem very enthusiastic with the ‘fine’ Gyftmas and New year he had. She had been half dreading this day all holidays because of his exercise plan she knew he had planned for her. Yet he hadn’t said anything and she certainly wasn’t going to bring it up. Still, it wasn’t like Papyrus to just forget something like that…was it?

“Are you okay Papyrus?”

He looked up and over at her, tea still up to his mouth. “HMMM?” He lowered the tea quickly, “YES! WHY WOULD YOU ASK THAT?”

She shrugged, finishing her mouthful. “It’s just, you seem to be lost in your thoughts this morning.”

“OH!” he brightened, “I WAS JUST THINKING WHAT YOU’RE BRAIN TEASER MIGHT BE.”

She didn’t believe him, but who was she to pry?

Finishing the last of her tea, she dumped the empty cup in the nearest bin and turned to face him. “Okay. Mrs Brown has five children and half of them are boys. How is that possible?"

Papyrus smiled, before he fell back into a thoughtful silence and they continued their walk around the park.

Okay, she was defiantly concerned now. Nothing she had ever seen from him had ever hinted he was anything other than energetic and positive. Had something happened over the holidays? She could try asking him, or perhaps she would be better off distracting him, maybe ask to go on that body-breaking exercise regiment after all?

“Papyrus, -“

“I DON’T UNDERSTAND WHY THEY TREAT ME LIKE A CHILD!”

She looked over to see Papyrus angrily dump his empty cup into the nearest bin, the first angry expression she had ever seen on his face.

“Wh-who?”

He looked at her, “MY BROTHER, MY FRIENDS, MY BOSS. EVERYONE!”

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them, it seemed like he was back to his regular self, because he beamed at her and said, brightly, “SORRY ABOUT THAT HUMAN! I DON’T KNOW WHERE THAT CAME FROM. LET US CONTINUE OUR FRIENDSHIP MORNING MEANDER, SHALL WE?”

He took longer strides, leaving her quickly behind him. She sped up, catching up to his long strides that forced her into a light jog. “Papyrus?”

He looked over at her, “WHAT IS IT HUMAN?”

She puffed, “Wanna- wanna slow down and tell me what’s wrong?”

He speed up, “NOTHING’S WRONG. EVERYTHING IS FINE. WHY DO YOU KEEP ASKING?”

“Papyrus!”

He stopped, looking down to see his hand grabbed her, in surprise. Seeing him stop, she quickly let go, “Sorry.” Then she crossed her arms, “But something’s obviously bugging you.”

“BUT I AM NOT A BUG, NOR AM I COVERED IN BUGS. HOW CAN I-“

“It’s an expression Papyrus!” She dropped her hand from her face, “It means something is upsetting you.”

They stood there in stiff, awkward silence.

She sighed, continuing with the walk, “Look, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. I just thought I’d let you know that you could, if you wanted to.” she finished lamely.

“SANS AND UNDYNE SHOULDN’T HAVE GONE TO YOUR SHOP.”

She turned back to him, still standing, and blinked in confusion.

Papyrus sighed, jogging to catch up, “THEY WENT BECAUSE THEY WANTED TO SEE WHAT SORT OF HUMAN YOU ARE.” He looked away, “THEY WERE SNOOPING AROUND BECAUSE I'VE MENTIONED YOU A FEW TIMES…OFTEN…..EVERYDAY. LOOK-” He quickly looked over at her blushing face, “-THE POINT IS THAT THEY SHOULDN’T HAVE SPIED ON YOU.”

She kept walking, her face still a little pink, “If it helps, they were very polite.”

He huffed, waving his arms around, “BUT THEY KEEP ACTING LIKE THEY’VE DONE NOTHING WRONG! WHEN I CONFRONTED THEM ABOUT IT, THEY ACTED LIKE I COULDN’T BE TRUSTED TO MAKE MY OWN DECISIONS OR THAT I NEED THE HELP. LIKE I DON’T KNOW ANY BETTER, LIKE I’M UNAWARE THAT HUMANS CAN BE DANGEROUS OR THAT I DON’T KNOW HOW TO DATE PEOPLE!” He was breathing heavily now.

Y/n looked over to see Papyrus glaring at the ground, keeping in stride with her. She was sure there were many events that she was missing from the last day she saw him and today that explained this level of a reaction. Still, this conversation was making her feel really awkward and she wasn’t sure she was the right person to talk to about danger or dating

Staring determinedly at the ground, she said softly “I get why you’re angry, and I know all about having people trying to interfere with your love life.”

_‘Pretty much summed up my relationship with my sister and mother right there.’_

“YOU DO?!”

She looked up to see Papyrus staring intently at her. Taken aback, she stopped walking to take a step back.

“Y-yes?” she said, unsure anymore.

Papyrus reached into his shirt and pulled out scraps of paper, which he handed to her. Fearing that this might be the long dread exercise regiment, she looked over the papers.

The ‘papers’ turned out to be tickets. Some sort of cooking expo was happening the next weekend.

She looked up at Papyrus, who was watching her reactions intently. Seeing her looking up at him, he gestured to the tickets, “UNDYNE AND ALPHYS GAVE ME THESE TICKETS FOR GYFTMAS, SAYING I SHOULD INVITE YOU."

“Oh.” She looked down at the tickets again.

“WHAT SHOULD I DO?”

She looked up into his expectant face, completely lost, “What? You want my advice?!”

He grinned, “YOU SAID THAT YOU KNEW WHAT IT WAS LIKE TO HAVE PEOPLE INTERFERING WITH YOUR LOVE LIFE.” He gestured at the tickets, “WHAT SHOULD I DO?”

“Well,” she rubbed the back of her head, “what do you want to do?”

“WELL, I WOULD VERY MUCH LIKE TO GO WITH YOU! BUT I ALSO WANT EVERYONE TO STOP TRYING TO INTERFERE!”

He was pacing in front of her know, wildly flailing his arms, “BUT IF I ASK YOU TO GO THAN THAT’LL JUST ENCOURAGE UNDYNE AND ALPHYS EVEN MORE, BUT I DON’T WANT TO HURT THEIR FEELINGS BY REJECTING THE TICKETS, AND I DO WANT TO GO, BUT I ALSO DON’T WANT TO GO ALONE, YET I DON’T WANT TO ASK YOU TO COME WHEN DOING SO WILL ENCOURAGE THEM AND-“

“Papyrus, calm down!”

He stopped in mid-step and came bounding over to her, hope in his eye lights, “YOU HAVE AN IDEA?!”

She stepped back “Err, um. no”

Seeing his crushed expression, she quickly added, “But-but what if you think about this like you just happened to get the tickets, what would you do then?”

He beamed, “THEN I WOULD ASK YOU!”

She smiled gently, “Than I think you should ask me and forget what the others want.”

“BUT THAT WON’T STOP THEM INTERFERING!” He crossed his arms, “I DON’T NEED HELP MEETING NEW PEOPLE, AND I’M GETTING TIRED OF UNDYNE’S RUDE JOKES AND SANS’S MEDDLING AND EVERYONE TRYING TO ‘HELP’ ME.” He looked at her sadly, “THEY KEEP TREATING ME LIKE A CHILD! WHY?! I DO NOT WEAR STRIPES!”

“Believe me, I get it!” she sighed heavily and patted his arm, completely confused over the whole 'stripes' thing, “But it’s not going to stop them anytime soon.” She looked up at him, “Tell you what, if I ever figure out how to get people to stop playing matchmaker, I’ll tell you.”

He rubbed his eyes, “REALLY?! IS THERE NO HOPE FOR HANDSOME SKELETONS, (WHO IS DEFINITELY NOT WEARING STRIPES!!) FROM THE SHIPPERS AND MEDDLERS!?!”

She grinned, hugging his side affection, “Looks like we’re in the same boat.” She thought she heard him groan, so she stood back, looking at his stunned, slightly put-out face, “Sorry to hear that people bug you too, but try and not let it upset you. After all, you're the Great Papyrus, whose only flaw is that he isn't fluffy!"

"YOU THINK I'M GREAT?" he asked softly.

She nodded, before continuing, "I say let's go and have a great day, anyway! Nothing says we can't go as friends!"

She offered her hand to him. He looked down at it, his expression confused and...sad?

Quickly, she withdrew her hands, rubbing her neck. "Or you can always go with someone else? Sorry, didn't mean to assu-"

"NO!"

She flinched, looking up to see Papyrus with is arms outstretched towards her, tickets still in his fists. Quickly fumbling with them, he grabbed one and offered it to her.

"Y/N, PLEASE COME WITH ME TO THE COOKING EXPO!"

She looked at the ticket, "You sure?"

"ABSOLUTELY!"

“Okay, thanks Papyrus” She took the ticket with a smile, reading over the details.

“I-I’LL PICK YOU UP-“

“Wait Papyrus.”

He looked up to see her gesturing at the address, “Papyrus, I know this area and it’s a nightmare to get parking.”

He looked thoroughly confused, “BUT Y/N, WE WON’T BE GOING IN OUR SLEEP, SO WHAT DOES IT MATTER IF WE HAVE BAD DREAMS. OH NO! ARE YOU TELLING ME YOU’LL HAVE NIGHTMARES IF WE GO?!”

She waved him off, “No, no. What I’m trying to say is getting a parking spot will be very difficult.”

He posed, “FEAR NOT! FOR I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL NOT ONLY BE ABLE TO GET A CAR PARK, BUT I WILL ALSO GET THE VERY BEST SPOT IN THE WHOLE CITY.” He turned to beam down at her, “NOTHING IS TOO GOOD FOR MY DEAR FRIEND.

Chuckling, Y/n asked, “How about we take the bus instead?”

“THE BUS?”

“Yea!” she fished out her notebook and scribbled down some details. “If you get on this bus, at this time, not only will I already be on it, but we can ride it together to the convention and not have to worry about parking.” She tore out the note, handing it to him.

“A BUS?” he looked up at her, “THOSE ARE THE BIG CARS I SEE HUMANS RIDDING. THE ONES WITH A LOT OF HUMANS INSIDE THEM?”

“That's them. People pay to ride them and you get driven to where you want to go."

His eyes sparkled as he looked back to the note, “SIMPLY AMAZING! IT’S LIKE FANCY SOCIAL GATHERING WHERE YOU GET YOUR OWN CHAUFFEUR!”

She giggled; his expression was quite priceless, “Sure. I’ll meet you on that bus, at that time, and we’ll have a great day on a bus and then a greater day at the cooking expo. Sound like a plan?”

Suddenly, she was up in the air again, being spun around, “NOT ONLY IS IT A PLAN, IT JUST MIGHT BE THE GREATEST PLAN, THAT WAS NOT THOUGHT UP BE ME, I HAVE EVER HEARD OF!”

~*~

_‘Okay, perhaps this wasn't the greatest idea ever.'_

"HI BUS DRIVING HUMAN! ONE TICKET TO THE COOKING EXPO PLEASE!"

Quickly making her way to the front of the bus, Y/n fetched out her bus card with one hand while grabbing Papyrus's hand with the other. She hurriedly waved the card over the pay point, smiled apologetically at the confused bus driver and dragged Papyrus with her to the back of the bus.

"Y/N! I SAW YOU OUTSIDE! WAIT, WHERE ARE WE GOING? I HAVEN'T PAID YET!"

She could feel all the passengers stares as she half-dragged a skeleton, still waving around his wallet.

She sat down and buried her face in her hands, particularly not fussed if the bus driver decided to drive off a bridge or something. She had seen Papyrus outside, of course, waving back at him before turning back to her book to mark the page and put it away. By the time she had put her book away, she had one second to think _'Has Papyrus ever been on a bus before?_ ' before Papyrus was trying to open the bus doors himself.

Reliving the moment and what came after it again wasn't helping as a groan escaped her.

"ARE YOU OKAY Y/N?"

She felt someone very light sit next to her, and judging by the sound of the voice, it probably was just Papyrus. She nodded into her hands.

"DID I PAY FOR THE TICKET WRONG?"

She sighed, “No. But I really should have really explained how tickets work on a bus though.”

“OH.”

They fell into an uncomfortable silence.

“OOOHHH! WHAT’S THIS RED LEVER DO?”

Y/n’s snapped up, to watch in horror as Papyrus’s hand moved slowly towards the emergency brake. Acting on impulse, she lunged, crying “Stop!”

Everything froze, as passengers turned around to see Y/n holding a startled Papyrus’s hand while she lay across his lap

“Y/N? ARE YOU OKAY?” Papyrus’s voice seemed strained

Dropping his hand and falling backwards into the corner, Y/n squeaked as her face exploded red. “I’m so sorry!” she cried.

Burring her head into her arms and curling her body onto the seat, Y/n felt the begins of a panic attack; a lightness and high pitch tone that was dulling the sounds of the concerned monster near her. She thought she could feel someone patting her head, but she didn’t pay them much attention as she took long, deep breaths.

“Lady, are you okay? Is this monster hassling you?”

She looked up and over to see a burly man standing in the aisle, glaring at Papyrus.

Papyrus puffed out his chest, “I WOULD NEVER HASSLE ANYONE! I’M Y/N’S FRIEND!”

The man scoffed, “I was asking the lady, freak.”

“WELL, I THINK YOU ASKED RATHER RUDELY AND I THINK YOU SHOULD PRESENT YOURSELF A LITTLE BETTER.”

“Excuses me?” the man snarled.

“I SAID-“

“Stop!”

Y/n stopped up, anger burning away the remnants of the panic attack. She was not about to let this man fight Papyrus over something as stupid as a misunderstanding and her overreaction!

She met the shocked man’s expression, head on, “He is my friend and I’m perfectly okay, so you can just sit back down.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me! You look like you’re about to cry and you’re telling me it’s nothing!?”

“I’m telling you that it isn’t any of your business, thank you very much!”

The man gaped at her before he turned with a huff and walked to the front of the bus, muttering, “Trying to do the right thing and look what happens? Fucking freak fuckers, they’re all the same.”

She breathed a sigh of relief and sagged back into her chair, completely drained. That whole situation when from start to train wreak so fast, it was unbelievable!

Papyrus peered over at her, his eyes cautious and hesitant, “Y/N, I-I’M SORRY. AR-ARE YOU OKAY?”

She stared at his eyes, completely at a loss for words, before she threw her head back howling.

“I DON’T GET IT, WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING!? WHAT’S THE JOKE?”

“On-only you-” she gasped, in-between burst of laughter, “-could make being on a bus exciting! What was that, a minute?!”

She beamed at the thoroughly confused monster, “Do you have any idea what my life was like before I met you? Nothing like this ever happened to me before!”

Papyrus looked away sadely, fiddling with his gloves nervously in his lap, “I’M SORRY.”

“Don’t be!” she grabbed one of Papyrus hands, “Papyrus, it’s a good thing.” She looked away shyly, “If I didn’t make that clear to you, then I’m sorry.”

Sighing, she settled back into her seat and pulled up her bag, putting away her wallet.

“I’M BEGINNING TO THINK WE REALLY SHOULD HAVE TAKEN MY CAR” Papyrus muttered, obviously still confused.

Her chuckles started anew, as she hummed her agreement.

~*~

The bus trip went a lot smoother after that.

Papyrus was like a kid at a candy store (an analogy he hadn’t appreciated, pointing out his lack of stripes yet again), watching the sights go by as people came and went. He was quick to greet every human who entered the bus, completely ignoring the fact that many of them jumped onto the bus, only to leave it right after they saw and heard him.

Y/n had quickly explained the functions of the red leaver and why they should never pull them arbitrarily. Papyrus had nodded wisely, comparing it to something like a ‘blue stop sign’, but she quickly let the subject drop when they arrived at their destination.

The convention was loud, with a lot more people than she expected to show up. Although, she thought as she looked back down at her ticket, perhaps she should have expected it. After all, tickets couldn’t be priced like this if people weren't willing to pay for it, and just because she didn't know about this convention before Papyrus, didn’t make it any less of a big deal.

Y/n and Papyrus stood in line, waiting for the convention to let them in. Papyrus drew all the eyes of a mostly human crowd, striking up a serious conversation three rows back with a man who was wearing a shirt stating ‘Penne for your thoughts’. Y/n, meanwhile, drooled over the food smells wafting through the closed doors.

“Oh, I hope we get a lot of free samples” she lamented, feeling her stomach grumble with her in agreement.

A large man in front of her chuckled, turning to looking over his shoulder at her, “Not likely. Sure, they’ll offer something for the general public, but if you want the good stuff, you’ve got to be a food critic or a retail shop owner”

“Y/N OWNS A BOOKSTORE!”

Blushing, Y/n looked away as Papyrus picked that moment to tune back in.

The man turned around, eyeing her curiously. “Really?” He gestured to a yellow badge he had attached to his shirt, “Then where’s your badge?”

“BADGE?” Papyrus asked

“Yeah. When you were filling out the details to get your ticket, there would have been a section that asked whether or not you were a retail shop owner.”

“OH! WELL, MY FRIENDS WERE THE ONES WHO BROUGHT THE TICKETS. WHAT DO THE BADGES DO?”

“This? Well, it lets people know that you’re in the industry and that means that everyone will be trying to get your attention. You know, give you free things, be extra nice, that sort of thing.” The man laughed, “You could always try asking at the ticket booth.”

Y/n looked back, waving her arms, “No, we’re-“

“ABSOLUTELY!” beamed Papyrus. He reached over and grabbed the man’s hand, shaking it vigorously, “THANK YOU FOR TELLING US! OTHERWISE, WE MIGHT HAVE MISSED OUT!”

“Yea, what a shame that would have been.” Y/n mumbled under her breath.

The man laughed, shaking Papyrus’s hand with matched vigour, “Glad to help! Name’s John, by the way.”

Papyrus gasped, “JIMMY JOHN!? THE ONLINE FOOD CRITIC?!”

The man (a.k.a-Jimmy John), rubbed the back of his head, “You’ve heard of me then?”

“HEARD OF YOU?! I WATCH ALL YOUR VIDEOS! LIKE THAT TIME YOU WENT TO ITALY AND DID A TOUR OF THEIR NOODLES, OR WHEN YOU WENT JAPAN AND MADE 30 FOOT LONG SOBA WITH THE HUMANS WITH NO HAIR!!”

John laughed, “Really didn’t know I had any monster fans out there.”

“CAN I PLEASE HAVE YOUR AUTOGRAPH?!”

John stared, before he smiled, “Sure.”

Papyrus was furiously patting himself down, looking for pen and paper. Sighing, Y/n reached in and handed John her notebook and pen. John smiled and said “Thanks.”, before signing a page while Papyrus looked on, a look not unlike a kid discovering that ants actually perform stunt shows on minuscule motorcycles.

After John handed over the autograph to Papyrus (now looking like he was holding his firstborn), he asked Papyrus what he liked about his show. Papyrus went off, the conversation lasting till they made it to the front of the line. John, beaming at Papyrus, bayed him goodbye, before moving beyond the closed doors.

Next in line, Papyrus and Y/n stepped towards the ticket booth.

The bored looking lady asked “Tickets?”

Instantly, the first words out of Papyrus's mouth were “MY FRIEND OWNS A BOOKSTORE.”

Y/n groaned, looking away and quietly disappointed the John hadn’t been a distraction enough to make Papyrus forget about the eye-catching badge.

The lady behind the ticket booth sat a little straighter. “You own a bookstore?” she asked, looking over at her.

“Um….yes?” She didn’t like where this was heading.

“Can you prove it?”

“Um…” there were a number of things that she, the owner, only knew. But that information wasn’t the type you shared with some lady at a ticket booth. Not if you liked your business not getting digitally robbed.

The lady frowned, “Well, I’m afraid I can’t just take your word for it-“

“OH PLEASE TICKET LADY!”

The lady flinched as Papyrus pressed himself to the booth’s glass “Y/N IS VERY KIND, AND HER BOOKSTORE, ER, ACTUALLY, I’VE NEVER BEEN, BUT I KNOW PEOPLE WHO HAVE SEEN IT AND THEY BOTH SAID IT WAS A WONDERFUL SHOP AND Y/N WAS A WONDERFUL SHOP OWNER! PLEASE LET HER HAVE THE YELLOW BADGE THAT LETS EVERYONE KNOW THAT SHE’S A WONDERFUL PERSON, WHO SHOULD GET THE VERY BEST TREATMENT!”

“Okay! Okay! Take the badge!” she practically threw the badge under the glass, with Papyrus nimbly grabbing it from the air.

He turned to beam at the still cowering lady, “OH THANK YOU, KIND TICKET LADY!”

“Please, just go.”

“WE’LL GO RIGHT NOW!”

Papyrus grabbed Y/n hand, dragging her away from the gaping stares of the people still in line and behind the closed door of the convention. Once inside, Papyrus steered both of them off to the side, in a quiet, secluded area. He offered the yellow badge to her.

“HERE Y/N. HERE’S YOUR BADGE.”

She took the badge, looking at the details. Beyond being eye-catching with it being bigger than necessary and yellow, there were little details on it, just a little blurb that simply stating ‘retail owner’.

She really didn’t want this badge. Not only was there the horrible prospect of talking to people trying to get you to sell their books (one of the reasons why she personally did her ordering online) but now there would be no ‘blending in the crowd’. The whole day was bound to be nothing but getting stopped at every store, polity declining people over and over again.

 _‘Too bad I’m not someone who thrives on attention.’_ she thought, looking at Papyrus.

An idea occurred to her.

Grinning, she offered the yellow badge to Papyrus “Think you can handle the awesome responsibility for tracking down good books for my shop?”

Papyrus gasped, “BUT-BUT Y/N! I AM NOT A BOOKSHOP OWNER!” he pushed her hands and the badge away, “YOU SHOULD BE THE ONE TO WEAR THE BADGE AND GET THE SPECIAL TREATMENT.”

“Papyrus, I’m not good with talking to people, which is basically what the people here want to do.” She shrugged, “I figured if you talk to people on my behalf, you can use your best judgment to figure out what books are worth selling."

“BUT HOW AM I SUPPOSE TO KNOW WHAT BOOKS THEY ARE?!”

She smiled, “That’s easy; it’s a book you want to keep reading.” She gestured at him “You like cooking, so you already have the interest. Just look for books that interest you and I’m sure they’ll automatically be good books. Besides, you aren’t buying books. Remember, the people here want to sell the books through shops, so I’m sure, if you wear this badge and talk to people, you’ll get lots of free samples. I’ll check out the books you think are worthy when we get back.” She grinned, “Sort of like a team.”

“A TEAM?”

She nodded, “You do the talking and I’ll use me shopkeeping skills to pick the very best books.” She offered the badge again, “So, how about it, do you want the badge? Because, if I’m honest Papyrus, I’d much rather not have it.”

Slowly, he took the badge. “ARE YOU SURE?”

Smiling, she picked up the badge from his hand, pinning it to his scarf, “Positive.” She looked up at his slightly blushing face “Just remember; don’t buy any of the books.”

He nodded, staring at her slightly dazed.

Grinning, she bowed slightly before him, her hand indicating to the rest of the convention before them. “Shall we, highly valued representative of the Textual Content bookshop?”

He puffed out his chest, standing tall, “I WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN!”

She smiled, “Just be yourself and you never will.”

In the next instance, Papyrus had her by the hand, dragging her to the nearest booth; a board salesman behind books about outdoor cooking. He watched them approach, his eyes automatically skipped her and landed squarely on the strutting skeleton, who had his chest puffed out with the yellow badge glinting in the convention light.

Standing straight, the man called out, all smiles “Ah, my good monster! Can I interest you in the greatest book about outside cooking ever written?”

Papyrus leaned down, looking closely at a book, “WHAT MAKES THIS THE GREATEST BOOK EVER?”

The man flashed a toothy smile, “Only a recipe for every type of cooking style one could ever use in the great outdoors! We’ve got recipes using billy pots to spit roasts, using everything from the freshest fish to the finest fouls.”

“Impressive.” Y/n commented, looking away from the back of her book to look over the free samples.

The man beamed, picking up the samples and offering them, “But of course! Nothing but the very best from the Paperbark Publishers!” He gestured to the other books around him, “If that grabs your fancy, then allow me to show you-“

“NO THANKS. WE’RE NOT INTERESTED.”

Y/n looked up in surprise, still chewing the succulent sausage she had taken from the sample platter. Papyrus had placed the book down and was moving on to the next booth. Smiling apologetically to the put out salesman, she followed him.

“What’s wrong? Why didn’t you try to get his books?”

Papyrus looked down at her, “YOU TOLD ME TO ONLY GET BOOKS THAT I THOUGHT ARE WORTHY, CORRECT?”

She nodded.

He straightened, “WELL, THAT SAUSAGE WE HAD WAS MARINATED IN HONEY SOY, HARDLY AN INGREDIENT I’D EXPECT CAMPERS TO HAVE.” He kept walking, “IF THEIR SAMPLES ARE GOING TO LIE, IMAGINE WHAT THEIR BOOKS MIGHT SAY? YOU’D HAVE ANGER CUSTOMERS COMPLAINING THAT THE RECIPES ARE TOO COMPLEX OR WORSE, NOT PRODUCING THE PROMISED QUALITY OF FOOD THEY WOULD BE EXPECTING.”

“But-but you just said no to him like it was no big deal!”

He turned to look at her, confused, “OF COURSE. I WASN’T INTERESTED IN HIS BOOKS, SO I SAID NO AND LEFT. IS THAT A BIG DEAL?”

She stared at him, trying to explain why it was…until she realised that no, it wasn’t. It was just something she struggled to do.

Beaming, she smiled up at him, “No, you’re right Papyrus, it isn’t a big deal. I think I’ve chosen the perfect representative after all.”

~*~

Like she knew he would, Papyrus took to being the centre of everyone’s attention like a bookworm took to a comfy chair. Word must have spread because soon stores were activity calling out to him, trying to get him before their competitors. Other people just wanted to take a picture with the tall skeleton, asking if he could pose with them for their camera. At some point, when it became obvious that they were going to lose each other if this kept up, Y/n suggested that they split up and meet in the food court area. Papyrus hadn’t liked the idea, but after she explained that she really didn’t like being at the centre of attention and adding that they could tell each other their stories on the way home, he had reluctantly agreed, making her swear to call him if she needed anything.

Now Y/n smiled whenever she saw the conglomeration of people with a tall skeleton at its centre. To her, being in that situation would be torture, but Papyrus was beaming, happily smiling and posing with people while sharing his opinion about cooking and sampling everything people offered. At some point, someone had given him an actual backpack and already it was stuffed with free stuff.

“Hey there buddy.”

She looked to the side to see a brightly sparkling booth, decorated in every bright colour imaginable. The sign proclaimed it as MTT-Brand Food Books, with an orange cat monster sitting under it.

The cat monster waved, “Yea, I’m talking to you, buddy.”

Y/n approached, curious. The cat monster looked friendly enough, wearing a pink work shirt and a small hat with a large pink ‘M’ on it. What was strange to her was the fact she could see all this. Shouldn’t he be swamped like Papyrus was, surrounded by ogling humans?

The cat monster held up a book; a large square robot wearing a chef hat that appeared to be singing on its cover. The book was also sequenced to the point that she highly doubted more could have been added. “Looking for something to sparkle up your day? Why not buy this book and add a little fub-YOU-lous to your life?”

“Nice pitch.” she grinned, picking up a spare book.

The cat monster’s eye twitched.

“So, why aren’t you being swarmed by curious humans?” she asked, looking over the book.

The cat monster sighed, “Because word spread pretty fast after some tried our samples.” He suddenly straightened, looking around nervously “I mean, err, people just don’t have the refined taste to enjoy MTT-Brand food.”

She laughed, “That bad?”

The cat monster quickly shook his head, “No! that good!”

He bent behind the booth and pulled up a platter. “Try one.” he offered, while slowly shaking his head.

Grinning, Y/n grabbed a piece of what appeared to be burger covered in glitter. Smiling at the disbelieving stare of the cat monster, she popped the piece into her mouth.

The burger had no real taste, or at least not one strong enough to penetrate the layers of glitter that formed a solid barrier between the burger and her tongue. Glitter entered her throat, irritating it and she coughed and a glittery cloud of sparkles emerged from her mouth, shimmering in the light. She suddenly found herself thinking she was in the spotlight, perhaps some bizarre version of monster pranked as glitter hung in the air all around her!

The cat monster sighed, bent down and pulled up his bottle of water, which he offered to her. Quickly grabbing it, Y/n drained the bottle, trying to wash away the glitter she could feel between her teeth.

“I tried to tell you.”

Y/n handed back the empty bottle, her throat still itchy from the glitter she could feel stuck there, “What was that?! Why was the burger covered in glitter?!”

The cat monster shrugged, “Just the Underground’s top-selling product, the famous Glambugger.”

“Monster’s eat glitter?!” Suddenly Pete’s comment about Papyrus’s cooking and how much he’d improved made sense.

The cat monster leaned heavily on the booth, “It's human glitter.” He waved a dismissive hand, “The boss is trying to sell fusions of human and monster foods.” He sat up, bringing up the book again while wearing a painful smile, “Which is why you should buy this book and be the forerunner on this new trendy trend!”

“Monster food?” she asked, looking back to the book she had somehow managed to hold during her glitter attack.

“You didn’t notice the burger disappearing from your mouth?”

Y/n raised a hand to her mouth, realising that she hadn’t swallowed the burger (just the mouth full of glitter).

The cat monster leaned back, his ear flicking in annoyance, “Monster food doesn’t need to be digested; your soul absorbs it directly. But cooking it is difficult, as you need magic to bind the ingredients together.” He shrugged, “I’m sure you’ve heard the monster food is great at healing?” she nodded, “Well, that’s because, when monsters cook it, they want to feed others; a positive impulse that affects their food and what effect it’ll have on the eater.”

“So, what you’re telling me-” she said slowly, looking back down at the book,”-is that if the monster was cooking a meal for their family, the food would be filled with motherly love?”

“It would be motherly love. Or at least, it would feel like that to the eater.”

“So, who made those samples?” She raised an eyebrow at him, only for him to step back, waving his hands.

“I never made the burgers, I just fetched them from the freezer and cooked them up. Mettaton was always the one who made up the batch, making them while watching and listening to himself being all glamorous.” He looked over her shoulder, muttering to himself, “What’s a robot suppose to know about taste anyway?”

“So if this book is about fusing the two, how’s a human supposed to cook the recipes?” She opened up a few pages, “As far as I know, humans don’t have much magic."

The cat monster sighed, “And I think you’re starting to see why not many humans are hanging around here.” He gestured to the book, “Only monsters can cook those recipes, but why would any monster bother, that’s what I say? Human food requires a lot more magic to have the same effect using magical ingredients would have.”

She looked over the book, before she nodded, “I’d like to buy this book.”

The cat monster stared at her. “Buddy, did you just forget about the glitter you just swallowed?”

She smiled, “Oh, I’m not saying the recipes in here don’t need work, but I’d like to very much support this. I personally think it’s a wonderful idea, in fact-“ she fetched out her notebook, scribbling her details onto it, “if you could hand this to the author, I’d like to get in contact with them and let them know what they can do to make this book more accessible to humans.”

The cat monster took the paper from her offered hand, staring at disbelief at the note.

“Oh!” she fetched out her wallet, “Here’s the money I owe you for the book, plus extra for the water I stole.”

“You don’t need to bother-“

“Do you have any idea how grateful I was to have that?” An idea occurred to her, “Actually, what’s your favourite drink?”

“My favourite drink?”

She nodded, smiling at him.

“Buddy, you don’t need-“

“Please, it’s the least I can do and I want to pay you back somehow.”

The cat monster looked away, mumbling, “Well, there’s the booth where they’re selling chilled milk from dairy cows feed on a diet of sweet grass.”

“Done!”

She quickly left, heading for the milk booth she had already visited.

“Y/N! THERE YOU ARE!”

She turned away from the milk salesman, the largest bottle of sweet cow milk they had in her hand.

“Papyrus!”

She jogged over to the waving skeleton, who looked more like a pack mule with all the bags he had. He smiled down at her, brimming with happiness. “HOW HAS YOUR DAY BEEN SO FAR?! ARE YOU HAVING AS MUCH FUN AS ME?!...WHY ARE YOU SO SPARKLY?”

She grinned, “It’s been a great day!” she whished the bottle, “Let me introduce you to someone.”

~*~

Apparently, they knew each other though Sans, which, as Papyrus admitted, wasn’t surprising, as Sans seemed to know everyone in the Underground. The cat monster was surprised to see her again, and even more surprised to see her offering the bottle to him. She had refused to accept his money and refused to accept his refusal, dumping the bottle on his booth before leaving with Papyrus, thanking him again as she left.

Soon, the pair was back on a bus, heading for home.

Papyrus was very energetic with his explanations on the books he pulled from random places on his person, seemingly to have a book from every booth, even as he assured her he defiantly declined books. He mostly talked about the adoring crowds he flocked to his handsome self, noting loudly that, of course he was popular, which summed up the story of his life, which she should sell as a book in her store.

She laughed, thanking him for his representation and assuring him he had just made it as the employee of the month.

Before long, the bus pulled up to Papyrus’s stop, with Sans was waiting outside, his hands in his pockets. He waved when she saw him, his grin ever present, yet Y/n didn’t feel reassured.

She looked back to see Papyrus's face fall as, he too, noticed Sans waiting for him.

“Your brother doesn’t like me, does he?”

Papyrus looked away, “HE-HE JUST DOESN'T KNOW YOU YET.”

An idea seemed to occur to him as he turned and grinned down at her. Concerned, she leaned further away from him, “W-what are you thinking?”

He leaned closer to her, “YOU WANT TO HEAR MY OPINION ON ALL OF THESE BOOKS? YOU WANT A CHANCE TO READ THEM FOR YOURSELF?”

She nodded, shirking further back and realising that she rather disliked a plotting Papyrus.

He stood up, gather all his books and bags. “THEN I INVITE YOU TO COME OVER FOR A SLEEPOVER, WHERE WE CAN TRY ALL THESE RECIPES AND DISCUSES THE WORTH OF ALL THESE BOOKS!"

“A sleepover?!”

She blushed, looking away from Papyrus, only to blush further when looking away meant looking outside into Sans’s suspicious face. Quickly turning away, she focused her attention on her hands, folded in her lap.

Papyrus laughed, “NYEH HEH HEH! A BRILLIANT IDEA, I KNOW.” She felt a gloved hand lift her face towards him, making her blush further, “IT SHOULDN’T BE A PROBLEM BECAUSE THE ONLY NEW PERSON WILL BE SANS, AND YOU’VE ALREADY MET HIM!”

_‘Sans, the person who doesn’t like me.’_

Papyrus searched her face, his expression imploring, “PLEASE Y/N. I PROMISE, IT’LL BE FUN!” He let go of her face, “IT'S IMPORTANT TO TRY NEW THINGS. AFTER ALL, IT’S HOW YOU MET ME!”

_‘My own words used against me!’_

Grumbling, she looked away and nodded, “Okay then, I’ll come over for a sleepover.” She looked up at his shimmering eyes, his hands covering his gasp of joy, “When were you thinking?”

“TONIGHT!”

“Tonight?!”

He beamed, turning to run out of the bus, “COME OVER AS SOON AS YOU CAN!”

She yelled after him, a hand outstretched, “B-but Papyrus!”

“CAN’T HEAR YOU! BYE!!”

She glared at the smirking skeleton, waving her goodbye as the bus drove away, his thoroughly confused brother by his side.

What had she gotten herself into now?

 

Next chapter is called: Bent over backwards

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, let's try something different.
> 
> !!!I'm on Discord, and I'm inviting everyone!!! 
> 
> HERE IT IS! https://discord.gg/cg4p4ps
> 
> Please, bug me!! Talk to me about my stories, tell me about your stories, discuss Undertale lore or, hell, tell me what the weather is like! Point is, I want to meet new people (and tumblr was sort of 'meh')!!!
> 
> I WILL be online at 23:00 Saturday, the 6th of Jan, Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) 07:00 Sunday,7th of Jan and (UTC), for at least an hour. Use this to figure your times (I had to =)- https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/meeting.html
> 
> I'll pop in and chat whenever I'm online, but these times might become a weekly staple...or changed, who knows?
> 
> Soooo looking forward to meeting you properly and, be warned, I may cry if I hear people saying all the nice things you guys continually keep giving me.


	8. Bent over backwards

Y/n climbed down her spiral staircase, laden with a heavy bag, a sleeping bag and her favourite pillow. Dumping her things onto her counter, she ticked off what she had in her bags for the fourth time, making sure she had what she needed. Overall, it had taken her little time packing and more time mentally preparing for whatever Papyrus was preparing…if one could prepare for the unexpected.

With a sigh, she double checked the bus schedule, noting the stop she needed to go to before slipping her phone back into her pocket. One final check around the store and Y/n was ready, carrying everything she needed on her back and shoulders out her store; feeling a bit like a pack mule.

As she locked her store and walked towards the right bus stop, she thought in frustration what a sleepover tonight would do to her business tomorrow. Not for the first time, she bitterly regretted that she didn’t have any employees, which would have been great right about now. However, as was always the case when she thought about the idea, one of the things she prided herself and her store on was her intimate knowledge of all the books in the store. How could she expect an employee to have an encyclopedic knowledge of her store when she only had that knowledge due to her personal interest and passion? The very idea of running a want ad that specifically stated ‘must love books, be prepared to memorise entire store worth of books and content and be able to answer customer enquires adequately ‘ was laughable, if not downright cruel.

_‘Oh well, it’s not like I can’t leave early or open the store a bit later.’_

~*~

When she arrived at the front of Papyrus and Sans’s house, she could hear the distinct sound of a vacuum cleaner being hurriedly pushed around, with the bearly audio sounds of what might have been Papyrus complaining to Sans about his mess. Hesitating, Y/n slowly approached the door and rang the doorbell.

The sound vacuum getting turned off, followed by hurried whispering was heard before the front door opened wide.

“Y/N!” beamed Papyrus, arms wide.

Y/n, meanwhile, was at a total loss for words.

Before her, with no hint that he knew any better, was Papyrus wearing a way too short maid outfit. The outfit ended on his upper things (if you could even call bones thighs), complete with a headpiece and a feather duster tucked into his apron.

Next thing she knew, she was being lifted into a hug and carried into the house, her mouth still open. When she finally came to, Papyrus had placed her on the ground in the living room, his face inches from hers.

“I’M SO GLAD YOU COULD MAKE IT! HOW WAS YOUR TRIP?  DID YOU BRING EVERYTHING YOU NEED? DON’T WORRY IF YOU DIDN’T, WE HAVE PLENTY TO SHARE!”

Blushing, she looked away, her grip on her should bag tightening. “N-no, it’s fine. I’ve got everything I need.”

“GREAT! LET ME SHOW YOU WHERE YOU’LL BE SLEEPING TONIGHT!”

Papyrus picked her and all her bags with one hand, tucking everything one arm, before sprinting upstairs, two steps at a time. She barely had time to acknowledge Sans, who waved at her from his resting spot on the couch.

Papyrus walked straight to the door with warning tape crisscrossed it. With his remaining hand, he swung the door open and strolled inside, before gently placing her on the ground, placing her bags off to the side and dusting her off with the feather duster.

“WELL, WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE MOST PERFECT ROOM EVER!?”

Y/n looked around the room, noting the various action figures, books, a wardrobe and computer set up. What caught her attention and immediately drew a blush from her was the mattress with a basic frame set up, set up to and alongside a race car bed.

“I-I’m sleeping here?”

“BUT OF COURSE!”

She turned to face him, “B-but I thought I was going to sleep on the couch!”

“DON’T BE SILLY! NO FRIEND OF MINE WILL SLEEP ON A GRUBBY COUCH COVERED IN CRUMBS AND KETCHUP STAINS, DESPITE MY VERY BEST EFFORTS TO CLEAN IT!” he beamed at her, “ISN’T THIS PERFECT?! I EVEN MADE SURE THAT YOUR BED WAS ON LEVEL WITH MINE! NOW WE CAN FALL ASLEEP FACING EACH OTHER!

“But. But!” she spluttered, her face neon as she imagined how she was ever going to fall asleep tonight at all!

He guided her out of the room. “I KNOW YOU’RE STUNNED BY YOUR VERY AMAZING FORTUNE TO BE AFFORD SUCH A WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITY, BUT YOU MUST LEARN TO CONTAIN YOUR ENTHUSIASM!

“Pa-Papyrus! I was-“

“NO NEED TO THANK ME HUMAN! YOUR STUTTERING TELLS ME ALL!”

He closed the door behind him, turning her around and lowering himself so that he could hold her by the shoulders, looking into her eyes. “NOW, WHAT SORT OF HOST WOULD I BE IF I DIDN’T OFFER YOU ALL THE COMFORTS OF HOME? ARE YOU HUNGRY? THIRSTY? TIRED? HOT? COLD? BORED? ITCHY?”

“N-n-no! But I-“

“GREAT! THEN YOU SHOULD GO DOWNSTAIRS AND SPEND TIME WITH SANS WHILE I QUICKLY GO FOR A SHOWER TO WASH UP!”

With a flurry of flailing limbs, Papyrus ducked back into his room, frilly skirt and all.

Y/n stared at the closed door, her mouth agape as she struggled to process what just happened!?! She was sleeping with Papyrus?! In his room?!? ALONE!?!?

Before she had a chance to fully recover her mind going through a full reset, Papyrus came out whistling a merry tune, wearing slippers, a shower cap and nothing but a big, bright, fluffy towel. When their eyes locked, he shrieked, a high pitch scream that was only matched by hers. While he ran towards the bathroom, Y/n pelted for downstairs, her hands covering her face. Inevitable, she tripped over her fleeing feet and braced for the impending impact as she fell downstairs.

“geez, you two sure make a lot of noise!”

Opening her eyes slowly, Y/n saw that she was hovering inches from the ground, her nose bearly grazing the carpet of the living room. Looking up, she saw Sans’s eye blazing blue, the same blue that now encompassed her.

With a twirl of his finger, Sans set Y/n on her feet, the blue glow leaving the moment her feet were firmly planted.

“Th-thank you” she stuttered, still pink in the face.

He shrugged, returning his attention his book.

Y/n stood there, heart still trying to settle, unsure what to do or where to go. Her bag, with her notebooks and her own books, was upstairs, but there was no way she was going back up there! Not until she saw Papyrus fully clothed again!

“you know, you can sit next to me.”

She looked sharply away from upstairs to stare at Sans, who was patting the spot next to him.

She waved him off quickly, “N-no thanks, I’m good” The last thing she wanted to do was sit next to a person who didn’t necessarily like her.

He shrugged again, settling once more into his spot.

After a long moment, where she swayed side to side, trying to think on an alternative to either sitting next to him or standing awkwardly, Y/n sighed and made her way across the room, sitting on the very edge of the couch, her hands clenched and fidgeting in her lap.

“here kid.”

She barely had time to look over at Sans before he gently chucked the T.V remote at her. After briefly fumbling with it, she managed to not drop it and looked back at Sans, confused.

He pointed to the television, “watch what you want kid.”

Gratefully for anything but this deafening silence, Y/n turned on the television.

“-In other news, a riot has broken out in front of city hall as human protesters were seemingly attacked by monsters after one of the alleged humans tripped a limbless monster. This attack marks the sixth attack-“

She changed the channel.

“-why do monsters need all these special rights? I say-“

*Click*

“-will some please think of the children?-”

*Click*

“-monsters-”

*Click*

“-should-”

*Click*

“-go-”

*Click*

 “-back-”

*Click*

“-to-”

*Click*

 “-HELL!-“

She turned the television off, somehow wishing for the awkward silence from before.

Sans chuckled, putting his book down. “don’t worry kid. it’s horrible to think about it, isn’t it?”

“No!” Y/n cried out, panicked. “I mean, y-yes, it’s horrible th-that it’s happening at all, b-but in my experience, riots like those are the extreme, not the norm!”

Sans waved her off, “don’t sweat it kid. can’t change the world, so why bother. right kid?”

There was an awkward silence, during which Y/n wished she was still watching the stupid television.

“I- I can’t control what other people do, but I can control what I do.” She looked across at him, desperate, “I’ve always been open about my monster support, Undyne should tell you the same thing.”

“ever gone to a monster right’s march?”

She looked away. “N-no” she whispered, ashamed.

Sans sighed. “kid, i didn’t mean to imply that you should be doing more. i know nothing will change for us monsters.” She looked back over at him to see his fist clench even as his tone sounded so defeated, “actions always speak louder than words” he looked at her, meeting her eyes, “right?”

Y/n had no idea what to say.

The sound of many books slamming onto the coffee table startled Y/n so much that she jumped a foot into the air with another shriek. Placing a hand to steady her heart (yet again) Y/n looked up to see Papyrus standing behind the coffee table (thankfully clothed again), which was now covered in an assortment of cooking books.

Papyrus stopped glaring at Sans and turned to beam at her instead. “Y/N! ARE YOU READY TO GET STARTED ON ALL THESE BOOKS? IF WE ANY HOPE OF PRACTISING THESE RECIPES, WE’LL NEED TO GET STARTED RIGHT AWAY!”

“I, um. Just let me go grab my bag quickly.”

She hurried back upstairs, keenly aware that the brothers were angrily whispering to each other.

 What had she bumbled into this time?

~*~

Truth be told, once she and Papyrus got themselves set up on the carpet, bits of paper and notes stranded across a number of book on the entire living room floor, Y/n found herself thoroughly engaged. Papyrus was a wonderful addition to the progress to steadily sort the books into the piles of yes, no and maybe. He was far more critical than she thought he would be, passionate and opinionated about what made a good cookbook. Pleasantly, he kept referring to her book, the one Sans got him for Gyftmas, whenever he needed an example of what the book he was criticising was missing.

Sans reminded on the couch, his own book open before him. Although he stayed mostly to himself, Y/n was sure he was more focused on their conversation than his book. That, or his timing was impeccable as he always seemed to have a pun ready for whatever book she or Papyrus were talking about.

Whatever the case, she quickly lost count the number of time she giggled at Sans's pun or how often she outright laughed at Papyrus’s reactions to them.

When the pile of books had finally been dived into the three piles, the hour of dinner was quickly ending, leaving them with no time to cook; not if they hoped to eat by tonight. As a way of compromising, Y/n suggested that they order-in and cook a simple dessert. The brothers quickly agreed and now they were eating pizza, with Y/n and Papyrus still sitting on the floor amongst their notes.

Y/n looked over at Sans, who had once again slathered up a slice of pizza with so much ketchup that she couldn’t even see the toppings. Swallowing her mouthful, she asked, “Sans, what brand of ketchup do you have there?”

Sans stared at her, his mouth full. “what?” he managed.

“SANS! DON’T TALK WITH YOUR MOUTH FULL!”

Sans swallowed quickly. “sorry, paps.” He turned to her and asked again “what brand is my ketchup? ummm?” he looked at his bottle, “some sort of tomato guy wearing a hat?”

Y/n laughed, “I guess I should be asking, do you have a favourite brand?”

“no, why?”

“I’m shocked that Papyrus doesn’t make it from scratch for you. Seeing as you seem to like it and he loves to cook.”

Papyrus dropped his slice on his pizza, staring agape at her. “YOU- YOU CAN MAKE KETCHUP FROM SCRATCH?”

Smiling, Y/n put her own plate down and leaned back, reaching for the ‘no’ pile. Reading off the titles of the book’s spines, she eventually found and pulled out “Saucy Sauces”, handing it to Papyrus. The book was too specific to ever really find a place in her shop, but if Papyrus wanted to try his hand…

He took it of her, opening it up and turning to the page she guessed mentioned homemade ketchup. Sans scooted over on the couch, reading over his shoulder.

“You two should try making your own ketchup one day.”

They looked up from the book staring at her. Blushing, she looked away and quickly finished her pizza.

“thanks, y/n.” Sans smiled at her, the softest tone she had ever heard from him to date.

“I-I-” Papyrus strutted.

She looked back at him, curious to see him blushing. When he saw her looking, he jumped up and blurted, “I THINK WE SHOULD GET STARTED ON THOSE DESERTS NOW!”

Grabbing her arm, Y/n was dragged onto her feet and pulled into the kitchen, leaving behind a bemused Sans staring after them.

Papyrus swiftly picked her up and placed her on the kitchen table top, grabbing a book he had from under his arm. Rapidly scrolling through the book, he found a page and gave the book open to her. Baffled, Y/n looked down at the page.

“We’re making soufflés?”

Papyrus turned to her, finishing tying his ‘Hotstuff coming through’ apron on, “I’VE ALWAYS WANTED TO TRY MAKING ONE OF THOSE! I’VE HEARD THAT THEY’RE REALLY HARD TO MAKE! THAT ONLY THE BEST CHEFS CAN MAKE THEM!”

She looked up at him, concerned. “Are you sure? You don’t want to try something just a little bit easier?”

He brought his fits up in a fighting stance. “I BELIEVE IN ME! AND WITH YOU BY MY SIDE, NOTHING WILL STOP ME FROM MAKING THIS SOUFFLÉ!”

~*~

Y/n and Papyrus beamed as their hard work entered the oven to cook. The kitchen bench, walls and even a bit of the roof were covered in batter, but nothing compared to themselves. Papyrus had faired a lot better than Y/n; his apron and taller nature ensured that only his arms and chest was covered. Y/n meanwhile, had batter in her hair and could feel a bit oozing into her socks.

Rubbing a trickle of batter away from her eye, she asked, “Can I have a shower please?”

He turned to look at her, “WH- OH, OF COURSE!” He blushed, “THERE’S A TOWEL ON THE RACK FOR YOU AND A FEW HUMAN CLEANING PRODUCTS. THE HUMAN AT THE REGISTER SAID THAT THEY WERE PERFECT FOR A FEMALE HUMAN.”

Somewhat concerned, Y/n smiled and left the kitchen, pointedly ignoring Sans’s laughter as he watched batter dripping off her.  After she grabbed her own bar of soap, towel and pyjamas, she entered the skeletons’ bathroom.

It was fairly tame, considering she had been worried that she would even have to explain the concept of ‘bathroom’ to monsters who may or may not have digestive systems. One look at the ‘female human’ cleaning products placed proudly around the room, however, made her wish she was explaining the function of a toilet instead.

Pink everything, with the cherry on top being every version of vaginal wash that ever existed.

Beyond mortified, Y/n turned around all the bottle, just to escape the horror of the word ‘vag’ being in her view, no matter where she turned.

There were not enough threats in the world to make her explain to Papyrus why all of this was so wrong!

~*~

“Y/N! DID YOU FIND THE SPECIAL PRODUCTS? DID THEY HELP WITH YOUR ITCHING?”

Burying her head in her hands, a half-remembered question from Papyrus that had confused her at the time came floating back to the top of her mind.

“P-Papyrus! Next time we have a sleepover, you don’t need to buy me anything special, okay?!”

“ARE YOU SURE?”

“Yes! Please don’t do that ever again!”

“BUT-“

“Please!”

Sans laughed, collapsing backwards on the couch. With nothing to do but wait for the sweet release of death, Y/n remained curled with her knees at her chest, her head still buried in her arms.

“WELL, IF YOU SURE Y/-“

“I am so sure!”

“…WOULD YOU LIKE TO PLAY A BOARD GAME INSTEAD?”

“Oh sweet mercy, yes!”

Springing up, Y/n hurried to the cardboard near the bookshelf that Papyrus was pointing to and quickly busied herself with selecting something that had ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH BATHROOMS!

Papyrus shrugged and left for the kitchen, most likely checking the soufflés' progress. With him safely out of the room, Y/n breathed a huge sigh of relief and allowed herself to actually look at the game selection.

Quite a number of them had the same, glamorous robot that she had seen on the book she had bought earlier from the cat monster. Putting them aside, she dug in deeper. There was a monster version of Monopoly and a few other classic games that looked like they simply had monster rebranding, but the game that she laughed at actually seeing was Twister. She pulled it out, noticing that it was still in its original packaging. Turning to Sans, who had calmed down enough to sit there, grinning at her, she waved the box at him.

“Twister, really?” she asked in disbelief.

Sans shrugged, “don’t look at me. we’ve got a number of weird friends who thought it was a good game for papyrus to have.”

“TWISTER!”

Papyrus lifted the box from Y/n’s startled hands, already tearing off the packaging. “EXCELLENT CHOICE Y/N! I’VE ALWAYS WANTED TO PLAY THIS ONE, BUT NO ONE HAS EVER WANTED TO PLAY!”

“I never said-“  she stopped as Papyrus held the board game up to his face, his puppy dog eyes peeking over the box.

 Grasping for anything, ANYTHING that would stop this from happening, she pointed to Sans. “O-only if Sans plays, okay?”

“i’ll play.”

She glared at his betrayal, his own grin broaden as he saw the panicked look in her eyes.

“EXCELLENT! LET’S PLAY!”

Papyrus quickly cleared an area and unfurled that mat.

Giggling, he spun the spinner.

“LEFT HAND ON YELLOW!” he called, eagerly placing his hand on the mat. Bent over, he looked over at her, “WHO’S NEXT?”

Sighing, Y/n walked over to the spinner and spun for her turn. “Right foot on red.” she called, entirely unenthusiastic. She walked to the other side of the mat, placing her bare foot on it.

Grinning, Sans lifted himself off the couch and made his way over to the spinner. “left foot on blue.” he called out. When he placed his foot on the mat, however, he twisted and fell, smiling up at them from the centre of the mat.

“NYHE! YOU’RE OUT SANS! NOW YOU HAVE TO SPIN THE SPINNER!”

“bummer.”

Y/n glared at him as he pushed himself up, grabbing the spinner before making his way back to the couch. Noticing her still glaring at him, he winked at her before flicking the spinner.

“right hand on red paps.” he called out.

Grinning, Papyrus maneuvered himself closer to her. Just as she was considering taking a dive, Papyrus smiled at her, his eyes sparkling, “ISN’T THIS FUN Y/N?”

Gronning, she smiled weakly back, “It sure is Paps”

“y/n? right foot green.”

Glaring, Y/n moved across the mat, her leg brushing Papyrus’s head.

~*~

“left hand on blue y/n”

“I can’t reach that!”

“THEN ADMIT DEFEAT TO YOURS TRULY!”

Grunting in effort, Y/n lifted her left hand (the centre of her balance!) and placed most of her weight on Papyrus’s right knee instead. With a desperate lurch, she swung and missed the only available blue that wasn’t between Papyrus’s legs.

“try again.”

“Shut it Sans!”

Ignoring his chuckles, Y/n swung again but quickly lost her balance in the swing. In a flail of limbs, Y/n toppled on top of Papyrus's leg, causing him to fall backwards and in on himself around her.

Groaning in pain, Y/n arched her spin away from the bonny knee dug straight into it, realising a second too late that doing so brought her chest into direct contact with Papyus’s.

He looked at her from under an arm, concerned. “Y/N! ARE YOU OKAY?”

“I’m fine!”

“YOU SURE? YOUR FACE IS DOING THAT BRIGHT, RED THING AGAIN!”

She brought both hands to her face and felt instant regret a second later as she was reminded that one of her hands had been helping keep her spin away from the bony knee. With a shriek of pain, she rolled to her side, directly into Papyrus’s lap.

“Y/N!”

Papyrus attempts to sit up, but with one of his own arms entangled in her legs, all he managed to do was bend her further, tucking her more securely into his lap.

“P-Papyrus!”

“IT’S OKAY! I’M ALMOST FREE!”

“S-stop!”

Between his effort to help her and her effort to escape, they ended up on the floor, with Y/n on her stomach in a failed attempt to crawl away with Papyrus laying on her back. Slowly, she looked over her shoulder to see Papyrus staring down at her, his gaze heavy and blushing.

“Papyrus?” she asked, concerned.

He just kept staring at her, his gaze unbroken.

“um, do i smell smoke?” Sans asked from the couch

“THE SOUFFLÉS!” Papyrus cried, before bolting to the kitchen that had black smoke billowing out from it.

Suffice to say, they didn’t have dessert that night either

~*~

Later that night, the Twister scene kept playing on an endless loop, over and over again in her mind as Y/n stared up at the dark ceiling in Papyrus’s room.

She couldn’t sleep. Couldn’t relax.

Wouldn’t have been able to sleep, not even if Papyrus wasn’t currently on his side, Staring Right AT HER!!

“Y/N? ARE YOU ASLEEP YET?”

“No” she whispered back. _‘Although I sure wish I was!’_

Either the sweet oblivion of sleep or the ability to relax, either way.

Papyrus giggled, startling her to turn and look at him. He had his own blankets up to his face, his eyes shimmering as he stared at her. When he saw her looking at him, a pinkish glow bled through his blanket near his face.

“Your blush is glow in the dark?” she asked, reaching out to touch it.

“I’M NOT BLUSHING!” he cried out, throwing the blanket over his blushing face.

Y/n giggled. “Yes, you are! I can see it!” She whispered back, poking the blush through the blanket.

“STOP POKING ME!”

“I’m not poking you” she grinned, still poking him.

Papyrus threw off his covers, glowing with a blush before he leaned over and poked her side. “HOW DO YOU LIKE IT?!”

She snorted, entirely unprepared for his retaliation. “Quit it!” she giggled.

“NOT UNTIL YOU APOLOGISE FOR POKING THE SKELETON!”

“I wasn’t *snort!* I wasn’t poking you!”

The sound of aggressive knocking and Sans’s irritable voice stopped them. “hey!” he called out “you two! keep it down in there!”

“WE’RE NOT CANOODLING!” Blurted out Papyrus

There was a good long pause from the other side of the door as Y/n threw the covers over her face.

“…are you canoodling?”

“NO!” “No!”

There was an even longer pause, followed by the sound of shuffling feet and bitter mummerings that sounded awfully like “never going to sleep now.”

There was rigid silence, as Papyrus and Y/n waited for the distant sound of Sans’s door closing.

When it came, they both sighed heavily.

Turning on her side, Y/n kept the covers over her head in a sad attempt to hide her shame. “Well, goodnight Papyrus!” She squeaked out, in what had to the sixth time she had said that statement tonight.

“GOODNIGHT Y/N!” Papyrus called out happily.

After another long stretch of silence, Papyrus eventually asked again, “ARE YOU ASLEEP YET Y/N?”

She didn’t respond this time.

After a moment, Papyrus sighed. “…GOODNIGHT Y/N” he whispered, followed by the sound of him rolling over in his bed.

What had she gotten herself into now?!

 

Next chapter is called: Pappy and Matty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man! This update cycle was harder than usual, and I think a big part of that is, as I get more readers, I'm getting more anxious? If you had told me that something like that was even possible, that I could get even more anxious, I honestly wouldn't have believed you. Not without asking if drug were involved.
> 
> Anyway, so, I'm still on Discord, and I've made being on for at least an hour, twice a week (2300 (UCT) Saturday and 0700 (UCT)Sunday) a permanent thing. So please, come chat! I'm still eager to hear from you. You'll also find hints about the next coming chapters to all my stories of there as well, so....there's that.
> 
> Hope to hear from you and I'll update at the start of February!


	9. Pappy and Matty

Y/n slowly awoke to a grinning skull encompassing her entire vision.

“MORNING Y/N! HOW DID YOU SLEEP?”

“Whaaa!”

Flinging her head forward, she smacked her head hard into a solid skull before she collapsed back onto her pillow with a groan of pain. With the room spinning she stared at the ceiling, Papyrus just off to the side of her peruvial vision.

“OW!” He complained, looking pass his hand pressed to his head to gape at her. “Y/N, WHY DID YOU HEADBUTT ME?!”

“Why were you hovering over me?!” She exclaimed, pressing her own hand to her head.

“I WAS WAITING FOR YOU TO WAKE UP!” he exclaimed, indignantly.

“But why were you just hovering over me?!" When she noticed what he was wearing, she immediately forgot about her headache. “Oh no.” she whispered quietly to herself, looking up into his way too eager face.

Papyrus was wearing the same exercise gear he had been wearing the first time she had even exercised with him.

 “I DIDN’T SLEEP AT ALL LAST NIGHT!” He was stretching before her now, pulling his legs up from behind him. “WHO COULD SLEEP WHEN THEIR BEST FRIEND IS LITERALLY RIGHT IN FRONT OF THEIR FACE!?”

Y/n felt like she could agree with the sentiment, but perhaps for different emotional reasons.

She threw the blanket over her face, vainly trying to pretend that she anywhere but here, with Papyrus in his exercise equipment and raring to go. She felt Papyrus poking her sides through the blanket again, even as she tried to squirm away from him under the covers.

“COME ON Y/N! THE SUN’S UP AND WE HAVE OUR MORNING EXERCISES TO GET TO! I EVEN MADE YOU THE PERFECT BREAKFAST TO START YOUR PERFECT DAY WITH THE MOST PERFECT SKELETON!”

“Breakfast?”

Papyrus tore the blanket from her warm body, causing Y/n to shriek at the sudden exposure to both the light and the cold. She tucked herself into a ball and threw her pillow over her head.

“NONE OF THAT NONSENSE! WE’VE GOT A FULL DAY AHEAD OF US AND IT STARTS WITH BREAKFAST!”

Y/n was picked up around her waist and lifted onto Papyrus’s shoulder.

“What the?” she said, slightly panicked, her legs kicking wildly at Papyrus’s front while she faces viewed the world upside-down and out from just under his rib cage. Before she could complain further, he had walked out his room and was making his way downstairs.

“what’s with all the noise now?”

Papyrus turned around on the bedroom landing, giving Y/n an upside down view of Sans emerging from his room, haphazardly pulling down his shirt and looking tired.

“BROTHER! DID WE WAKE YOU?”

“We?!” Y/n said, incredulously.

Sans shrugged, “eh.”

Papyrus brightened. “WELL, SINCE YOU’RE UP, YOU CAN COME DOWNSTAIRS AND HAVE A PROPER BREAKFAST FOR A CHANGE!”

“sure paps.” He smiled back.

With a happy hum, Papyrus turned around and continued to walk towards the kitchen.

Arching her back so that she could actually talk to Sans while viewing him, she reached an arm out to him desperately “Sans! Some help please?!”

He grinned, “sure pal. papyrus?”

Papyrus stopped and turned around, his hand on the stair-rail.

“can i get a lift too?”

“You traitorous bas-“

“OF COURSE YOU CAN!”

Papyrus eagerly bounded over to Sans and proceded to pick him up and tuck him under his remaining arm.

Sans grinned over at Y/n, cocking a finger at her. “hiya pal.”

Giving up with a sigh, she went limp and tried to ignore the blood pooling in her face. “Morning Sans.” she said, monotone.

Soon enough, Papyrus had once again picked and placed both Y/n and Sans at the kitchen table, breakfast already on the table. He sat between the two, his eyes sparkling as he watched them.

Sans helped himself to a few things, seemingly use to this. Y/n, meanwhile, gaped in amazement at the buffet before her. There as a bit of everything, from eggs, bacon and toast, to different types of pancakes and muffins.

She looked to him, shocked. “Papyrus, this all looks amazing!” She reached for a muffin. “Do you always cook this much?”

He rubbed the back of his neck, “N-NO?”

“he normally cooks half of this.” Sans added, slathering his plate in ketchup.

“I-I JUST WANTED TO MAKE YOUR FIRST MORNING HERE PERFECT.” Papyrus mumbled, toying with the food on his plate.

Y/n smiled gently at him, making him blush and looking away to avoid her bright eyes. Quietly chuckling to herself, Y/n tuckered into her own plate.

She hummed in appreciation as she ate, further making Papyrus blush as he watched her eat.

“so paps, what’s the plan for the day?” Sans asked, eyeing his brother.

Papyrus looked other at Sans, still slightly pink. “WELL, Y/N AND I ARE FINALLY GOING TO START OUR FRIENDSHIP MORNING WORK OUT TODAY-!”

“Yay.” Y/n cheered fakely, under her breathe. Sans grinned further.

“-AND I’M THINKING WE’LL DO THAT AS WE JOG TO HER SHOP, BEFORE I-“

“Wait a minute.” Y/n said, spluttering as she thought about what he had just said. “Are you telling me that, not only do I have to start the workout today, but then you and I are going to jog all the way to my shop?!”

He beamed “YEP!”

“But Papyrus-!”

“welp, i can see that you’ve got today all figured out.” Sans pushed himself out of his chair, carrying his dirty plate over to the sink while the other hand held onto a coffee cup stating ‘It’s a brew-tiful day!’. He grinned at Papyrus as he made his way out of the kitchen. “i’ve got things i need to take care of, so i'll see you when you get back.”

“You can always join us.” Y/n offered, hoping that if another person joined them, it would divide Papyrus’s attention.

Sans turned to leave, waving a hand over his shoulder. “sorry kid, too busy.” He leaned back in, his smug grin peeking out past the kitchen door frame “besides, running behind work is a form of exercise.”

Papyrus stood up, his eyes boggling out in different directions. “NYEH! SANS! HOW MANY TIMES MUST WE HAVE THIS CONVERSATION?! THAT DOESN’T COUNT!”

Sans shrugged and left.

Before long, Y/n and Papyrus were also done with breakfast (despite Papyrus's insistence that she try everything more than twice). While she sat back, feeling full, Papyrus began to clear the table, packing the leftover food into different containers before placing them in the fridge.

“Let me help.” Y/N offered, carrying the dirty dishes over to the sink and looking around for the soap.

“Y/N, YOU DON’T NEED TO HELP! LET THE GREAT PAPYRUS TAKE CARE OF IT WHILE YOU GET READY FOR YOUR WORKOUT!" He pushed her towards the living room. "OH!" he pushed one of the containers into her hand, "AND MAKE SURE YOU PACK THIS WITH YOU! A PERFECT SNACK FOR YOU, MADE BY THE MOST HANDSOMELY GORGEOUS SKELETON EVER!"

Y/n pushed back, her resistance hardly noticed by Papyrus's strength. "But I really should at least help with the dishes-"

"NONSENSE HUMAN! I'LL BE DONE LONG BEFORE YOU'RE FINISHED PACKING!"

She grinned, "Is that a challenge?"

Papyrus stopped pushing her and stared at her.

Then he grinned.

"I ACCEPT YOUR CHALLENGE HUMAN!" He threw back his head with a laugh "NYEH HEH HEH, NO ONE CAN DEFEAT THE GREAT PAPYRUS!”

“A round of tea and sandwiches says that I’ll be dressed and ready to go before you’ve had time to clean the kitchen and put away the dishes.”

He posed, “YOU SHALL BE SOUNDLY TRUMPED HUMAN!”

“Really?” Y/n called out from the living room, “Because I’m already halfway there!”

“WHAT?! THAT’S CHEATING HUMAN! YOU’RE CHEATING!”

“I’m also still packing!”

“NYEH!”

Giggling to herself, Y/n continued to gather the books, placing the three separate piles into separate bags.

"heya kid."

She looked up to see Sans grinning down at her, leaning on the upper staircase rails and dressed in his normal blue hoodie.

"Hi Sans." She said, before continuing to stuff books into bags.

The next thing she knew, all the books were shrouded in a blue glow and were lifting and placing themselves neatly into the bags, before the bags themselves were lifted and gently placed by the front door. Startled, Y/n quickly looked up as the last of the blue flames disappeared from Sans's eye as he made his way down the stairs.

"You have-I mean, that was-" Blushing, she looked away. "Thank you Sans"

What she wanted to say was how cool that was (magic had to be just about the coolest thing ever), but, despite yesterday, she still felt awkward being alone with Sans.

He chuckled. "no sweat kid."

Now she was left standing awkwardly in the middle of the room and trying to not look at anything in particular, fiddling with the container while she waited for Sans to finish walking downstairs and continue on his way.

Only, he sat down on the bottom stair, grinning when he saw her dismayed face.

"before you go upstairs and get ready for your jog," He began, "i just wanted to take this time and thank you for making my bro happy. i means a lot to me."

Y/n rubbed the side of her arm. "Thank you?" she replied, unsure.

Sans nodded and stood up, his hands firmly in his pocket. He winked at her, before walking towards the door.

"Wait." Y/n called out after him.

Sans paused, a hand on the door, looking over his shoulder at her quizzically.

"You-you still don't like me, do you?"

Sans shrugged, turning back to the door. "nah, i trust ya kid."

"I said like Sans."

He grinned and left, closing the door on Y/n's hurt expression.

~*~

After being the first one ready (a near victory, much to Papyrus's dismay), Y/n was standing outside in the morning light in her spare clothes with Papyrus off to her side, carrying all her books and bags. No amount of pleading or attempts at convincing had swayed him to let her carry her own things.

“IT’S GOOD RESISTANCE TRAINING FOR MY SUPERB SELF! BESIDES, NOW NOTHING WILL SLOW YOU DOWN OR PREVENT YOU FROM GIVING IT YOUR ALL!”

So now she was standing, her muscles already nervous after the rigours stretching Papyrus had insisted on. She really couldn’t see the point of stretching (not when she was certain that it wasn’t going to help in the slightest), but she did discover she had more muscles then she could have ever imagined.

“OKAY Y/N! LET'S START WITH A LIGHT JOG!”

Groaning, Y/n lifted her unwilling arms and legs and began to move forward at an unreasonable pace. Papyrus, beaming, jogged alongside her.

"AND....FLIP!"

"Flip?!"

She looked over to see Papyrus jogging backwards, still beaming and completely unaffected by the multiple bags he was carrying. Groaning, she turned and began to jog backwards.

…for about a meter.

“Whaaaa!”

Y/n experience falling again in less than twenty-four hours, immediately followed by the sensation of hovering above the ground, surrounded by a glow again. Opening up her clenched eye, she saw Papyrus reaching for her, his eyes glowing the same orange glow that surrounded her body.

“CAREFUL Y/N!”

She was gently placed back on her feet, whereupon Papyrus came over, dusting her off and checking for injuries.

She tried waving him off, “I’m fine Papyrus! I trip all the time.”

“YOU DO?!” He brought a hand to his chin, considering. “I’LL NEED TO IMPROVE YOUR HAND-EYE COORDINATION THEN.”

Y/n laughed, “Good luck with that!”

“IN THE MEANTIME, WE HAVE MANY MILES WE NEED TO TRAVEL BEFORE WE GET TO YOUR SHOP!”

Her face fell, “Oh, right.”

“ONWARDS Y/N! AND THIS TIME, PERHAPS YOU SHOULD TRY NOT TRIPPING.” And idea occurred to him, “I KNOW, WE’LL ALTERNATE BETWEEN JOGGING AND RUNNING EVERY FIVE MINUTES!”

“Running?!”

“AND OFF WE GO!”

~*~

Groaning, Y/n leaned heavily against the door to her shop, struggling to catch her breath and to stop her arms and legs from shaking.

“Y/N, IS THIS YOUR SHOP?! IT LOOKS SO GRAND!”

She turned her head over to the side to see Papyrus still carrying all her things and not even winded. She had no clue what monsters ran on to keep them going, but it had to be breaking a law of physics somehow.

She waved vaguely at her shop, still desperately trying not to throw up again. “Welcome to Textual Content *heave* bookshop, Papyrus.”

Papyrus beamed, further tightening his grip on her bags.

“Y/n! There you are!”

Y/n and Papyrus turned to see Matt hurrying away from his store and moving quickly towards them.

“Matt,” she called out between breathing, “*gasp* Good morning.”

“Late morning.” he corrected, eyeing Papyrus warily.

Papyrus stuck out his hand eagerly towards Matt. “HELLO HUMAN! I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS!”

“You’re Papyrus?”

She smiled weakly, “Let me get settled in and I’ll *huff* introduce you two properly.”

Fishing out her keys, Y/n managed to push herself up long enough to find the keyhole, unlocking her door. Pushing it up, she walked inside, vaguely aware that she was followed in.

Making her way straight for the front register, Y/n collapsed onto her desk with a grateful sigh. With a half-hearted wave, she indicated to the space behind her. “Papyrus, you can dump all that stuff here.”

“OH, OKAY!”

Papyrus came around, placing the bags behind her. She felt what might have been his hand, patting her back. “YOU DID REALLY WELL TODAY Y/N! AND EVERY DAY, YOU’RE GOING TO DO EVEN BETTER!”

Normally, she would have gasped at the very idea of doing any of that again, but who has the energy?

Matt laughed, placing a warm cup by her head, “Well, I got to say, I’m impressed that you’ve managed to convince our little Bookworm to have any part with morning or exercise.”

“BUT OF COURSE! Y/N IS MY VERY BEST FRIEND AND ALL I WANT IS FOR HER TO BE THE VERY BEST SHE CAN BE!”

“Man, you are quite the character, aren’t you?”

Y/n groaned, sure that her body would openly rebel if she moved any further. With her head firmly planted on the desk, she waved a hand towards Papyrus voice’s direction, “Papyrus?” she waved towards Matt’s, “This is Matt. He owns the coffee shop next door and is my….” She looked up at him, “What would you call us?”

Matt shrugged, “A love-hate relationship like ours? I’d say destined lovers if we were in one of your awful romance books that you think are any good.”

She rolled her eyes, “Some jerk that I happen to like.”

“Aww, love you too Y/n”

“LOVE?!”

Y/n and Matt stared at Papyrus who was gapping at them, his expression sorrowful.

“Papyrus?” she asked, concerned.

Matt moved a hand to one of her arms, patting her gently, “Is everything okay?” he asked, keeping his eyes on Papyrus, whose eyes were glued to Matt’s hand.

She looked up at Papyrus, concerned “I-I don’t know. Is everything okay?”

Papyrus shook himself, grinning at her. The grin was very strained. “EVERYTHING IS FINE!” He looked at his bare wrist, “WELL, WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT! WELL, I BETTER GO! BYE EVERYBODY!” He turned and practically jogged for the door.

“Wait, Papyrus!”

Y/n dashed around the counter and ran towards the front door that was just closing behind the fleeing skeleton.

As she existed outside, all she could see was the trailing red scarf disappearing around a corner.

 

Next chapter is called: Miss and Hit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And with the start of February marks the end of my spare time =( Don't expect bi-weekly updates....although, if I do get a chance to update, it will always happen on a Saturday!
> 
> !!!AND I'VE GOTTEN AMAZING FANART!!!  
> I'm not sure if I can share them (I really should have asked sooner!)  
> But!  
> As soon as I figure it out, I'm sharing them with the world! 
> 
> ALSO, I'm still giving hint pictures on the next chapter on both tumblr and Discord. You know, if you want another hint on the next chapter to go with the next chapter's title! 
> 
> On a personal note, I just want to explain a little bit about what these past two weeks were like for me:  
> Week 1: OMG, look at all the colours! I've got soo much water coming out my nose I should run a water park. Hey! How about if Y/n actually turns into a cat, but with the personality of a dog? That would be an AMazing idea for a chapter story!! I am so smart! Where's my Nobel prize?!  
> Week 2: Argh, I don't wanna write! I just wanna sleep and- OH why did my family come into town?!  
> ....so yeah
> 
> I've written this next part about fours times and I've finally decided I'd explain it using Undertale soul traits logic (cause, why the hell not!?).
> 
> For those how don't know, I consider myself having an Integrity core, mostly Patience soul. My Patience was fine, but my Integrity wasn't happy with what I was writing. The chapters were shorter than I planned, I didn't flesh out certain scenes as much as I wanted to and, overall, my writing FELT weaker this time around. The more I felt this, the less I wanted to write. Patience wanted me to delay the update but Integrity wasn't having NONE of that. I said I'd do something, I'm F-ing doing it! Patience rolled its eyes, but keep be ploughing on, keeping me from deleting entire sections and scrapping everything multiple times.
> 
> Now, don't get me wrong, I'm okay with these chapters, but a lot of self-criticising has soured this update cycle for me to the point that I don't think I could ever like these chapters, personally.  
> And that's okay!
> 
> I mean, I don't have to LOVE every chapter and there are bound to be favourites! So why can't the same be true for chapters I just didn't have fun writing?  
> It's okay to not be okay, okay?  
> Okay =)


	10. Miss and Hit

Papyrus ran. Ran away from the grand bookshop, ran away from the human male with his dumb face!

Ran away from Y/n and her deeply concerned, beautiful eyes.

Everything had suddenly been too much, too fast for him, and he found himself torn between bursting into tears and attacking the other human. He had wanted to whisk Y/n away from the other human and push her away from him at the same time. But why?! He didn’t know!

All he knew was he had to get away, to escape as fast as he could before he…before he…

He just didn’t know!

By the time he had gained enough control over himself, he found himself outside of his own home, staring at the door handle. He didn't know how long he just stood there; the simple decision to open the door or to walk away was too much for him right now.

*Cling*

Papyrus jumped, startled by his phone message. Fumblerling with his phone, he finally managed to look down at his screen, where he saw he had several missed messages from Y/n.

A new message from her had always made his soul leap, eager to read and reply as quick as he could. But now Papyrus just stared sadly at the screen, rereading her newest messages.

 **Y/n:** Papyrus, are you okay? Did Matt do something wrong?

 **Y/n:** Did I do something wrong?

 **Y/n:** I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you!

 **Y/n:** Please, just tell me that you’re okay?

Papyrus reread that last message the most. Was he okay?...No, and he still didn’t know why.

Or what to say.

“Y/N,” Papyrus spoke aloud, typing in what he said into his phone, “I’M, ER, FINE! I JUST HAD TO RUN BECAUSE….BECAUSE….”

He deleted the message.

No, he was not fine and he didn’t want to lie to her either.

But he didn’t want her to worry!

But he didn’t know what he could say that wouldn’t make her worry more, let alone what actually his confused emotions were!

_‘WOULD SHE EVEN CARE?’_

His soul dropped as his hands started to shake. Another painful stab to his chest and he tore open the front door, running for his room.

“pa-papyrus!” called Sans, sitting up startled from the couch.

Papyrus didn’t hear him, barely aware that he somehow had wound up on his bed. All that he knew was that the tears wouldn’t stop and that he had never been in pain like this before and he still didn’t understand why?! Nothing had ever hurt him like he was hurting right now. Not even when Undyne had broken his arm by accident, or when Sans had cried in his arms after drinking all night at Grillby's or when they had both been kids and….and…

…and, um. What had he been thinking?

Confused, he finally felt gentle, soothing backrubs that brought him slowly back to the present. Turning his head from his pillow, Papyrus turned to look at whoever was patting him, but all he could see was Y/n’s sleeping bed from last night, bringing along a fresh wave of misery, tears and sobs.

“papyrus.” cooed Sans’s voice beside him, “what’s wrong bro?”

“I-I DON’T KNOW!” he wailed, burying his head back into his pillow.

“well, can you tell me what happened?”

Sniffling, Papyrus pushed himself up, staring teary-eyed at Sans, snot dripping from his nasal cavity. Smiling gently, Sans reached over and whipped his nose with his jacket’s sleeve. Papyrus gently pushed away Sans’s hand, mumbling “THAT’S GROSS SANS. NOW I’LL NEED TO CLEAN YOUR JACKET.”

Sans shrugged, sitting back, “eh, i’m sure it was due for a wash anyway.” His smile fell slightly, “now, please tell me what happened papyrus. it hurts seeing my brother like this.”

Papyrus rubbed his eyes, before his hands fell into his lap and he stared at them without seeing them. “I STARTED Y/N’S FRIENDSHIP MORNING WORKOUT AND, AFTERWARDS, WE MADE IT TO HER BOOKSHOP. Y/N INTRODUCED ME TO THE HUMAN WHO OWNS THE COFFEE SHOP NEXT DOOR.” Papyrus looked up at Sans’s confused face, his own face falling. “SHE’S DATING THAT HUMAN SANS.”

“she’s what?!”

Sans jumped from his bed, looking furious, magic pouring freely from him in waves. “i knew this was a mistake! humans lie paps! didn’t i try to warn-“

“SHE NEVER LIED TO ME SANS! SHE JUST NEVER TOLD ME!” Papyrus yelled, standing up and grabbing Sans’s shoulder.

Both brothers looked over at Papyrus’s hand restraining Sans in surprise. Quickly, Papyrus withdrew his hand, bringing it to his chest as he sat down. “S-SORRY.” he mumbled.

Why was he doing these weird things, he never acted like this before!? It was all so confusing!

Sans slowly sat before him, on the edge of Y/n’s bed “b-but i thought-?“

Papyrus rubbed the tears that were forming on the corners of his eyes, smiling weakly up at Sans, “I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN BETTER. I SHOULD HAVE ASKED, MAYBE EVEN HAVE VISITED HER SHOP EARLIER THAN THIS!” He scoffed weakly, “SOME FRIEND I TURNED OUT TO BE.”

“that’s not true papyrus! anyone would be lucky to have the great papyrus as their friend!”

“THEN WHY DON'T OTHER HUMANS WANT TO TALK TO ME SANS?" Papyrus eyes fell back to lap. “THEY ALL EITHER RUN AWAY OR LAUGH AT ME.”

Sans chuckled softly, leaning over to pat Papyrus’s knee, "bro, they're just intimidated by having someone as cool as you come up and talk to them."

"REALLY?" Papyrus looked up, his eyes hopeful.

"yeah. i mean, you're the best monster, friend and brother who ever lived, and you just start talking to them? no wonder they don't know how to properly respond!” Sans sat back with another chuckle, before sighing, “that's just too bad for them, right?"

"YEAH... YEAH! THAT'S TOO BAD FOR THEM!” Papyrus stood up, beaming “I REALLY AM PRETTY GREAT, HUH?"

"you're the greatest paps.” Sans said softly, beaming up at his brother.

Papyrus felt instantly better, till he thought again about Y/n and Matt’s hands. Just as quickly as his mood lifted, it came crashing down as he sat back on his bed, grabbing his head between his hands.

“I JUST WISH I KNEW WHY I FEEL THIS WAY THEN!” he cried out, flustered.

“wh-what?”

He lifted his head to see Sans taken aback.

He held out his hands, “I’M FILLED WITH SO MANY EMOTIONS RIGHT NOW SANS! SO MANY CONFLICTING THOUGHTS AND FEELINGS, AND NONE OF IT MAKES ANY SENSE! WHY DOES THINKING ABOUT THE HUMAN AFFECT ME THIS WAY! IT’S AFFECTING ME MORE THAN ANYTHING IN MY LIFE EVER HAS, MORE SO THAN THINKING ABOUT HOW AMAZING I AM! ” He looked up in horror at Sans, “I-I’M SICK! THAT’S THE ONLY ANSWER THAT MAKES SENSE! OH STARS, I’M FALLING DOWN SANS!!”

Sans quickly reached to grab his hands, pulling his attention back to him, “bro, calm down! you’re not falling down.”

“THAN WHAT IS THIS SANS!? WHAT’S WRONG WITH ME?!”

Sans let go of his hands to look away, rubbing the back of his head, “y-you really don’t know?”

“NO! TELL ME, PLEASE!”

“i-i can’t paps.” Sans looked back at him, sadly, “no one can tell you what you’re feeling but you.”

Papyrus groaned, clutching his skull again. Oh why couldn’t he figure out what or how he was feeling?! Why did this have to be so confusing!!

“i’ll talk to the human.” Sans said, moving to stand up.

“NO!” Papyrus reached over and grabbed his leg, “I WON’T HAVE YOU TRYING TO SCARE HER OFF SANS! I’M STILL A LITTLE UPSET THAT YOU WENT TO HER SHOP WITHOUT TELLING ME!”

“i was on my best behaviour last night, wasn’t i?”

“AFTER I TOLD YOU OFF FOR TRYING TO MAKE HER FEEL GUILTY ABOUT OUR POLITICAL SITUATION SHE HAS NO CONTROL OVER!” He watched as Sans looked away. With a sigh, he continued, “SHE ISN’T BAD SANS, SURELY YOU SAW THAT LAST NIGHT? I STILL DON’T UNDERSTAND WHY YOU DON’T LIKE HUMANS IN THE FIRST PLACE! SURE IT WAS ROUGH IN THOSE EARLY MONTHS, BUT NOW WE HAVE SO MANY RIGHTS AND HUMAN ALLIES WHO WANT THEIR GOVERNMENTS TO KEEP CHANGING THEIR LAWS FOR US!” He leaned in closer, trying to look into his brother’s eye lights, “FRISK IS HUMAN, SANS, AND THEY WORK SO HARD FOR US! HOW CAN YOU DISLIKE HUMANS, AFTER ALL THE PROGRESS THEY’VE MADE TO WELCOME US BACK ONTO THE SURFACE?”

Sans turned to look him, his eyes searching, “i just- it’s just that-“ He sighed heavily, “i don’t know why.”

Papyrus knew that he was lying, that he was hiding something from him. He also knew from experience that Sans would never tell him, no matter how much he pleaded and begged him to do so. Sans was a very good actor, but he was still his brother and he had long ago seen the little slips and looks he cast whenever they were in the presence of another human. There was something he just didn't like about the humans.

Especially Frisk.

Casting his impressive memory back to when they both first saw Frisk hadn’t revealed anything about what might have caused it! Frisk was so shy, so quiet, it was hard to imagine them saying or doing anything that could upset his lazy brother. He hadn’t asked Frisk of course, unwilling to break the illusion that when the two were in the same room that the easy-going batter between the two wasn't just surface deep. Sometimes he wondered if Frisk knew though, if the meaningfully looks the two threw each other when they thought no one else was watching were anything to go on. Sometimes, it was all he could stand, wanting to just grab the two and make them talk it out! It had worked for Frisk and Undyne, hadn’t it!?

But now there was another human in his life and his brother was acting like Y/n were an enemy as well when all he wanted was them to be friends! Hadn’t yesterday’s sleepover been inspired by that desire?!

…it had, hadn’t it?

Papyrus huffed, crossing his arms in irritation “FINE, DON’T TELL ME. BUT I’M SERIOUS SANS, DON’T SEE HER BEHIND MY BACK AGAIN!”

“papyrus-“

“PROMISE ME SANS!”

Sans rolled his eyes, “okay fine!”

Papyrus nodded, smug that he had gotten his stubborn brother to see things his way. The right way of course!

“so, what are you going to do?” Sans asked instead.

Papyrus could feel his grin slipping. “I-I” he looked into his lap, “I DON’T KNOW.”

Sans chuckled sadly, “i thought you got over this indecisiveness after the gyftmas break? you seemed to get better as soon as the gyftmas season was over.”

“THAT’S BECAUSE Y/N HELPED ME FIGURE OUT WHAT I WAS GOING TO DO WITH UNDYNE AND ALPTHYS’S GIFT! SHE REALLY HELPED ME FEEL BETTER AFTER ALL THE TEASING."

"i remember." Sans muttered darkly, one of the few at the Gyftmas gathering who hadn't joked about Papyrus and Y/n being together. Sans had actually refrained from making any book puns, despite the fact that Papyrus knew his brother had plenty to inflict upon poor, unsuspecting monsters! “well, do you plan to see her again, now that you know that she has a mate?”

Papyrus felt a gab of pain in his chest, anger and sorrow hitting him at once. Gritting his teeth, he mumbled, “I DON’T SEE WHY THAT SHOULD MATTER? I'M STILL HER FRIEND, AREN'T I?"

"is-is that what you want?"

He looked up to see his brother looking at him, searchingly.

"OF COURSE! I MEAN, I DID HAVE FUN WITH HER ON OUR FRIENDSHIP DATE TO THE COOKING EXPO, AND I RATHER ENJOYED MYSELF, AND I’LL ADMIT THAT I WAS HOPING WE COULD GO ON ANOTHER DATE AGAIN, PERHAPS ONE WHERE I COULD EVEN BRING ALONG MY OLD MANUAL, BUT NOW THAT I KNOW ABOUT HER HUMAN MATE, I GUESS THAT ISN’T AN OPTION ANYMORE.” He took a calming breath, before beaming, “I’M HAPPY TO JUST BE HER FRIEND! I REALLY LIKE BEING HER FRIEND SANS, AND WITH MORE WORK, I’LL BE THE BESTEST FRIEND SHE HAS EVER HAD! WE’LL BE BFFS FOREVER!!”

“you sure?”

“OF COURSE! I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS! I’M SURE ABOUT EVERYTHING!”

"then why are your hands gripping your blanket so tightly?"

He looked down to see the blanket twisted and wrung out excessively on his lap, stretching the material beyond what it should have been capable of. Quickly, he let it go, attempting to smooth out the stubborn crease as if nothing had happened.

"I-...I WAS JUST..."

He didn't know! If he knew why he was acting so strange, he wouldn't be here right now! He'd still be in Y/n's store, helping her put away her new books he helped her pick. A flash of familiar pride ran through him as he thought about those particular books. He, The Great Papyrus, had been trusted by Y/n to pick out those books, his advice and opinion listened to in the highest regard as Y/n hung onto his every word!

Oh no! What if she thought he hated her store?! What if she thought he didn't like her mate with his dumb face and ill-informed opinion about Y/n's wonderful books!? What if she thought Papyrus hated her books as well?!

What if she thought he hated her!?!

With a gasp of horror, he scrabbled amongst his bed sheets, desperately searching for his phone.

"papyrus, what's wrong now!?" Sans asked, flinching at his sudden movements.

"MY PHONE!" cried Papyrus, "I NEED TO FIND MY PHONE! Y/N SENT ME SO MANY MESSAGES AND I HAVEN'T RESPONDED TO ANY OF THEM! SHE'S GOING TO THINK I HATE HER!!"

"bro, calm down! i'll just give it a call."

Papyrus was in the middle of flipping his mattress when he looked over to see his brother with his own phone next to his ear.

There was a moment of silence, before a familiar ring tone sounded between the gap of his bed and the nearby wall.

Throwing himself forward, Papyrus plunged his hand into the gap, searching by blind touch and following the sound of his ringtone.

"AH HA!" Papyrus cheered, pulling his phone out at last.

In the next instance, he had his phone up, rapidly texting.

"Y/N! I'M OKAY! I'M SORRY THAT I RAN AWAY AND FOR NOT RESPONDING QUICKER! YOU DIDN’T DO ANYTHING WRONG AND I LOVE YOUR BOOKSTORE, UNLIKE YOUR HUMAN MATE!”

He sent the message off and waited with anticipation.

And waited.

"SH-SHE HATES ME." Papyrus whispered, staring at his unresponsive screen.

“bro, i’m sure she’s just doing something else. perhaps she’s serving a customer?”

He wanted to believe Sans. He really wanted to. Sans was so smart, so supportive that there wasn’t anything he didn’t believe he was capable off when Sans believed in him so much.

So why didn’t he believe him now? Why did it feel like she already hated him, like she had rejected his friendship already?

Why did his eyes keep tearing up today, at random thoughts and times too?!

*Cling*

 **Y/n:** So it was Matt who upset you?

Papyrus let loose a breath he hadn’t realised he had been holding, his soul lightening the moment he read her name on his phone.

Quickly, he responded, momentarily forgetting that Sans was still in the room.

“I THINK SO?” Papyrus replied, sending off another message. He still wasn’t sure what he was feeling, let alone pinpointing its source!

Her next response came just as slowly as before.

 **Y/n:** Do you still want to meet up tomorrow for our friendship morning workout?

Papyrus thought about those runs, thought about their progress from the slow, boring yet somehow fun meanders to the night he had stayed up, enthusiastically researching human biology and training regiments they could do together!

Especially the day after that particular night, when she had looked so sad on the street near his house, then so happy as she smiled up at him. He could still clearly remember what it had felt like to be hugged by her for a change.

It had been…one of the nicest, most soul-warming experiences of his entire life.

He knew, deep in his soul, he loved those mornings runs; when it was just the two of them in a city still waking up. He never wanted those mornings to end; their purpose to help both keep his exceptional, superb self in top peek condition and to help improve her to the still impressive rank of second best had, in itself, become less important than just seeing her in the early morning light.

…So why was the idea of seeing her now hurting him? Shouldn’t he want to see his dearest friend? To apologise for so rudely running away and making her worry? Afterall, that was what the logical, smart thing to do! What in the Stars name was wrong with him?!

_‘I-I NEED TO APOLOGISE TO HER…AND GET CONTROL OVER MY NON-SENSICALLY EMOTIONS! I WANT TO SEE MY FRIEND, SO I’M GOING, NO MATTER HOW PAINFULLY MY CHEST HURTS!’_

“SURE! I’LL BE THERE!” he continued to say his texts out loud before sending it.

 **Y/n:** Great! I promise, I’ll explain everything to you tomorrow.

_‘EXPLAIN EVERYTHING? IS SHE GOING TO TELL ME WHY SHE DIDN’T TELL ME SHE WAS DATING?’_

He still didn’t have an answer why he had run away from her shop, why his emotions were so mixed, vivid and confusing! The only thing he knew right now was that he still wanted to see her, regardless of what she had to tell him.

He was just sorry that he hadn’t thought to ask her about herself earlier.

_‘I’VE BEEN A TERRIBLE FRIEND SO FAR, BUT I PROMISE, I’LL DO BETTER!’_

~*~

Papyrus stood on the outskirts of the park, watching as Y/n (completely unaware of his amazing stealth skills!) checked her phone from a distance while she sat at her usual park bench. His soul twisted painfully upon seeing her again, and he could feel his grip slipping on all the things he had brought from the helpful human at the gift store that were supposed to be used in a human apology.

_'IT'S MUCH SUPERIOR FOR MONSTERS! THE STRONGER THE EMOTION, THE STRONGER WE CAN JUST TELL HOW SORRY SOMEONE IS!’_

Sans hadn’t liked the idea of him apologise to Y/n or seeing her, but after he reminded his brother than he WAS an adult, he had agreed to let him do what he wanted, leaving him alone so that he could pack away the spare mattress Y/n had slept on yesterday.

He…he hadn’t properly put the sleeping mattress back into storage under the stairs yet. He had been much too busy looking up the proper technique to apologise to humans to worry about putting it properly away! For now, it was perfectly acceptable to leave it pressed against his bed’s wall, sliding it into the gap between the wall and his bed! No, he would do it properly later…if nothing else came up, that is.

He had far more pressing concerns right now, perfecting the human apology technique and getting his continually perplexing emotions and impulses under control. The trick, was to pretend he was okay, that everything was fine and his chest didn’t hurt! Sort of like acting!

 _‘JUST LIKE METTATON!_ ’ He thought brightly.

Feeling a bit better, he walked towards Y/n, her back facing him as she continued to look at her phone.

It was so important to him to get this right, to properly apologise to Y/n and make it up to her somehow. It didn’t matter what she had to say to him. From now on, he, The Great Papyrus, was going to be the best friend she ever had!

Even if it continued to hurt being this close to her.

~*~

Y/n looked down again at her phone, checking to see if she had missed a message or something from Papyrus. He wasn't usually this late and she wondered if he truly was okay enough for their run this morning.

After he ran out of her store yesterday, she had reluctantly returned to her store, sending message after message in the hopes of figuring out what she had done wrong to upset him. She bounced from wanting to run after him, to doubt about him actually wanted to see her, to self-loathing as she realised she didn't even know where he might have gone, to regret that she didn't have at least one number she could have called to one of his loved ones, to at least let them know what had happened. She had even toyed with the idea of calling Pete, but the last thing she had wanted to do was cause trouble for Papyrus by getting his boss involved.

In the end, she had ushered out Matt (promising to let him know what had happened), closed her store and hidden away up in her apartment, eventually falling into unintentional fitful sleep with her phone clutched in her hand. When Papyrus had eventually replied, she had been startled awake and had actually flung her phone across the room, where it landed behind her couch.

When she finally had managed to fetch her phone from out under a couch that, frankly, could do with more vacuuming, his message confirmed her fears that he had taken Matt too literally, mistaking his jab at her books as something personal. She planned to explain to him in person, that it was what some friends did and that she honestly didn’t mind. Afterall, Matt and her were mates (and had been for a long time now), something Papyrus himself acknowledged in his first reply to her. If she could convince him that this was acceptable behaviour for certain friends, perhaps he wouldn’t be so upset on her behalf?

She didn’t know how exactly she was going to tell him, but she at least wanted to try.

She didn’t want to see Papyrus running away again over a misunderstanding.

“Y/N! I’M SORRY!!”

She screamed and threw herself forwards as Papyrus unexpected voice suddenly spoke right behind her! On the concrete floor, she placed a hand to her racing heart, looking up at Papyrus in the morning light.

“Papyrus! What are- what’s with all the balloons and flowers?”

Papyrus was decked out in what had to be at least half of a gift store’s everything. Flowers, balloons, stuffed animals, boxes of chocolates and a deck of apology cards, he held all these items before him, presenting them to her.

“I GOT YOU ALL THESE THINGS TO MAKEUP- STARS! I’M NOT DOING THIS RIGHT!”

Quickly, he bent on one a knee, staring at her on her eye level through a forest of flowers. “Y/N! I AM SO SORRY FOR YOUR LOSS!”

“My-my loss?”

Sweat beaded his head as he quickly looked towards one of his hands, currently struggle to hold up all the cards and a sad teddy bear. “ER, MY CONDOLENCES!”

By now, she had managed to sit up and was watching balloon after balloon float away, slipping from his weakened grip. “Papyrus, I don’t-?”

“I’M SORRY THAT YOU’RE LEAVING!” he cried out, frantic now.

In the next moment, his grip slipped and he dropped all the cards and the teddy bear. In his attempt to prevent this, his other hand slipped as well and all of the gifts dropped to the concrete floor (or floated away as was the case for all of the balloons).

“I’VE RUINED MY ONE CHANCE TO APOLOGISE!!” Papyrus wailed, crumpling to the concert and bringing his knees up to his chest, before burying his head in his arms.

As he cried into his arms, Y/n stood up and looked around, uncomfortable with such an open display of strong emotion and thoroughly confused over what just happened. Seeing that the park basically empty, she stepped around the fallen gifts and flowers and crouched behind him, patting his back awkwardly.

In the next instance, Papyrus turned and threw his arms around her, crying into her shirt. Unprepared for the embrace, Y/n fell backwards onto her backside, dragging Papyrus further into her embrace.

“Pa-Papyrus! What’s wrong?!”

Inconsolable, he continued to weep into her arms, his face pressed firmly into the crook of her neck. Feeling her heart break for the poor guy, she wrapped her arms around him in kind, gently alternating between patting and rubbing his back.

After a time, she became aware that his sobs were actually words, repeated over and over again. “DON’T HATE ME, PLEASE DON’T HATE ME!” he sobbed in an endless loop.

“Papyrus,” she cooed softly, “I don’t hate you! Why would you ever think that I hated you?”

His arms tightened around her, but he didn’t lift his head. “I-*SOB* I RUINED MY ONE CHANCE TO A-APOLOGISE TO YOU!”

“Apologise for what?” she asked, beyond baffled.

“FOR-FOR RUNNING AWAY YESTERDAY! FOR MAKING YOU WORRY ABOUT MEEE!”

“Papyrus?”

He didn’t respond.

“Papyrus, please look at me.”

Slowly, reluctantly, he pushed away from her, his face covered in orange-tinted tears and mucus.

Gently, she placed both of her hands on his shoulder, angling her face so that he couldn't escape her eyes. “I don’t hate you, I have never hated you and, honestly, I’m having a hard time imagining what you could actually do that would ever make me hate you!” She brought a hand wipe away his tears, before cradling the side of his face. “You have nothing to apologise for!”

“B-BUT WHAT ABOUT MY BEHAVIOUR YESTERDAY?” he asked, wiping his own face with one of his gloved hands.

“I thought you might not like Matt and I was worried why you ran away, but neither of those things deserves an apology like this Papyrus!” She gestured to the gifts behind him, many moving away from them in the morning breeze.

Papyrus turned to look behind him, his expression falling further as he saw all his apology card flying away and towards the ocean.

Fearing that he would begin crying over what he considered a disaster on an apology (which it kinda was, but entirely not necessary!), Y/n reached over and patted one of his knees, drawing his attention back to her.  “Look, I feel I need to explain what the deal with Matt is.”

Papyrus looked sharply up into her eyes, his expression hopeful.

“Matt- Matt is- well you see.” She sighed, “He’s an idiot. He doesn’t mean it when he insults my books. It’s just how we treat each other. I swear it’s all in good fun and we do it to each other all the time.”

“HE TREATS YOU LIKE THAT ALL THE TIME?!” Papyrus cried out in outrage shock.

“It’s all in jest Papyrus! It’s called ‘ribbing each other’, and it's what people sometimes do with certain types of people. It doesn’t mean I think any less or more of our friendship just because we don’t do that to each other! Afterall, you and I have a very different type of relationship than what I have with Matt or that you have your brother, right?” She waited for him to nod, his face haven long fallen to stare bleakly at his twisting hands in his lap, “Different people interact differently with their different friends, it’s just the way it works sometimes, right?”

Still, she wasn’t getting a strong response from Papyrus, and doubt made her question an assumption she had been making.

“We are friends…right?”

His shoulders tightened as his hands stilled, before he gave a deep, shuddering sigh and nodded. “BEST FRIENDS.” he mumbled.

When she didn’t respond, he quickly looked up, tears in the corner of his eyes, “SORRY, I DIDN’T MEAN TO-“

She hugged him, stilling his babble “Yeah,” she agreed, “best friends.”

After a while, he returned her embrace, silent tears once again falling onto her neck, even as she returned to rubbing his back.

She had no clue what was going on, what she did or what she could do to make it better. All that she knew she was that she was going to do everything in her power to fix this, whatever this was.

Anything, for her best friend.

 

Next chapter is called: A fabulous talking to

**Fan Art?! (Since when!!)**

**Sabinarius** \- [Friendship Morning Workout!](https://sabinarius.tumblr.com/post/170068119731/%E1%95%95-%E1%95%97-%E1%95%95-3-%E1%95%97-ive-never-made-anyone-fanart)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Question for you guys; does Burgerpants have an actual name/ name you’d prefer or am I free to make one up?
> 
> Also, School sucks!  
> Sorry, it had to be said. I actually missed updating mid-way through, but I'm happy with these chapters!  
> Anyway, if you want to give fan art/stories....I love you. Seriously, here's my heart.
> 
> And if I’ve committed an ultimate sin and spelled one of my beloveds' names wrong, or worse, forgot to include you (I’M SO SORRY!), please tell me!  
> See ya for the next update! (It’s close to April Fools, isn’t it? Hmmm)


	11. A fabulous talking to

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now, I know that today is Sunday, but I wanted to do something fun for this day, so I thought, 'why not?'  
> And here we are!  
> Oh, and as an added bonus, I want you to ask yourself, 'Is this the first Saturday of the month?'  
> What's that? It isn't?  
> Huh, guess I'll have to update again when it is then, right? =)

Y/n still didn’t understand why Papyrus had felt such a need to apologise in the way that he had. After she had helped him pick up what they could of the gifts scattered around the area, Papyrus had helped her carry everything back into her shop, their morning run effectively cancelled.

All attempts to encourage him, to pep him up in some way, had failed, and she had quickly given up. Instead, she retreated internally, trying desperately to make sense of Papyrus’s erratic mood and behaviour. She knew he was energetic; a sweetheart who wore his heart on his sleeve, but that didn't explain all of this. She may not understand how a person could want to live the way he did, so open and so…eccentric, but at least there had been a loose connection of logic that she could follow, some semblance of sense.

Now she sat in the Dining Room hours later in the same day, watching Papyrus move slowly around the café, his movement noticeable slower, more subdued. She had been so concerned with how lacklustre he had said goodbye to her in the morning at her shop that she had barely opened up her store before closing it again, instead, spending her mid-day sipping tea and watching him from her table. He hadn’t even spun-hugged her when she turned up, instead settling for a more subdue and brief embrace.

To say she was worried would be an understatement.

“What happened between you two?”

Y/n looked away from Papyrus to see Pete standing off to the side of her secluded table. Without waiting for invitation, he sat heavily into the seat opposite of her, before jerking his thumb over his shoulder towards Papyrus, “I’ve never seen the boy so upset. Did you two get into a fight or something?”

“I have no idea!” she gestured to her open notebook, where she had been scribbling ideas into, “I’ve been trying to pinpoint exactly what happened, and brainstorming ideas to make him happy again.”

Pete spun the notebook to face him, looking over the timeline she had drawn. Normally she would have hated anyone just grabbing and reading her notes like this, but she desperately wanted answers that his rude actions had barely registered with her.

After a moment, Pete spun the notebook away from him and back towards her, his expression thoughtful. “Can’t say I understand it myself.” He shrugged, “Maybe it’s a monster thing, something that we humans can’t understand.”

“it’s not a ‘monster’ thing.”

Both of them turned to see Sans standing outside, leaning on the window sill as he grinned at them.

“Sans! Long time no see!” beamed Pete, standing up and reaching for a handshake.

Sans lazily stuck out his hand and passively let Pete shake it, his eyes lingering longer on Y/n face before he grinned at Pete, “hee, how’s it going pete?”

“It’d be better if you could tell us what’s up with Papyrus.” Pete let go of Sans’s hand, looking at him carefully, “Did something happen at home?”

Sans shrugged, “plenty of things happen at home.”

“Right.” Replied Pete slowly, his smile straining.

Pressing himself up, Sans walked around the garden and inside, coming to a stand in front of their table.

He grinned down at her, “how’s it going y/n?”

“Just fine.” She mumbled, struggling to look him in the eye.

He indicated to a spare space on the table’s side, “mind if i sit here?”

“That depends," Pete said, leaning back and watching Sans carefully, “is this a friendly visit?”

Sans held up his hands, “hey now, i just wanted to get to know y/n better.”

“You do?” she asked in disbelief.

Sans nodded, pulling over a chair from the empty table nearby before sitting down in it, “sure. i had fun getting to know you over the weekend, and after seeing how much you mean to papyrus, i figured i’d like to get to know you better.” He winked at her, “maybe even become your pal.”

Hope bloomed in her chest, even as caution made her eyes fall to her tea.

If she could actually be friends with Sans, maybe she could start hanging out with Sans and Papyrus and not feel like an unwanted guest? Or at least, he might be inclined to share with her about what he knew about Papyrus’s sudden change.

Before she could say anything, however, Papyrus himself came marching over.

“SANS! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!”

Sans shrugged, putting his hands into his jacket’s pocket. “thought i’d come in for a tea and say hi to y/n.”

“AFTER I SPECIFICALLY TOLD YOU TO LEAVE HER ALONE!”

“you said i wasn’t allowed to see her behind you back.” He looked over at Y/n, smirking, “i’d say this qualifies as very much as right in front of you paps.”

“WHAT ABOUT THE OTHER HALF OF THAT CONVERSATION SANS! THE HALF ABOUT NOT SCARING HER AWAY!”

“did it ever occur to you that i just wanted to get to know y/n better? that i might actually want to be her friend too?”

Papyrus gapped at him, momentarily at a lost for words. After a while, he folded his arms with a huff, looking away, “THAT DOESN’T SEEM AT ALL LIKELY.”

Sans shrugged, looking over at Y/n, “well, it’s true; i would like to get to know y/n better.” He cocked an eyebrow at her, “assuming that it’s okay with you kid?”

Y/n looked from Sans’s grin, to Pete watching passively, to Papyrus obviously conflicted face.

Shyly, she looked away and nodded.

“see paps? everything’s fine.”

“I DON’T KNOW,” Papyrus said, toying with his empty tray.

“Don’t worry boy, I’ll stay here and make sure your brother plays nice.” added Pete, grinning over at Sans’s indifferent shrug.

Papyrus still looked conflicted, even as he said, “WELL, IF YOU SURE PETE.”

Pete nodded, waving him off, “Why don’t you finish your rounds and you can come over and joins us for your lunch break?”

Papyrus nodded slowly, throwing a final glare at Sans, looked conflicted at Y/n, then turned and left.

“What’s that all about Sans?” asked Pete, leaning back to look at the grinning skeleton.

He chuckled, “oh, apparently paps thinks i’ve got a problem with y/n.”

“Don’t you?” she asked before she could stop herself.

Sans waved her off, “nah kid. i’m just a bit protective when it comes to my baby bro.” he eyed her, his grin tighten, “i don’t like seeing him unhappy.”

Before she could fully register his sudden mood shift, he was back to grinning with ease, “i figured if we became good friends, it would make paps happy, and i honestly had fun when you came over kid, so i thought, why not give it a shot?” He raised an eyebrow at her, "why? didn't you have fun while i was in the room?"

“I-I had fun.” She admitted, feeling her sides clench for some reason.

Clearing his throat, Pete mentioned, “We were just talking about Papyrus and trying to figure out his sudden mood change.” he gestured at Sans, “You wouldn't happen to have any more information about that, would you? It hurts to see the boy like this.”

Sans shook his head, leaning back with a sigh, “paps was okay when i saw him in the morning as these two left for the run or whatever. next thing i know, he’s come home like this and that’s how he’s been ever since.” He eyed Y/n, “i think that, whatever happened, must have happened between then.”

“I don’t know what to say Sans.” she said, exasperated as she quickly flipped through her notes, reading her timeline aloud, “We went for a jog, where he was carrying all my stuff, before making our way to my store for the first time. That’s where we met Matt, and Papyrus seemed okay with him, and he seemed to like my store when we entered.” She quickly flipped to the page where she had tried to remember exactly what was said, “Do you think it’s because I assumed he like my store?”

Pete shook his head, “I highly doubt he’d be this upset over something you said Y/n.”

“matt?” asked Sans, mildly curious, “who’s matt?”

Y/n didn’t look up from her notes, still flipping through what she wrote, “He’s the owner of the coffee shop next door and a friend.”

“a friend or a mate?”

“Mate, pal, bud, amigo.” She looked up, exasperated, “Why does this matter?”

Sans was staring agape at her, for a total lost of words. Eventually, he recovered enough to ask, “a-are you seeing anyone right now?”

She cocked her head to the side, at a loss for where this conversation was going, “I’m seeing you right now. What, am I suppose to be seeing dead people or something?”

Sans started laughing, holding his sides as tears gather at the corner of his eyes. Pete chuckled softly next to him, leaving Y/n staring at Sans in absolute befuddlement.

After a while, Sans calmed down to ask, “no, no. what i meant was, are you dating right now? do you have a partner?”

Her face busted out in neon red, her mind thrown completely through the loop as such a personal question came right out of nowhere from the last person she thought would ask her!

“N-n-no!” she spluttered, before burying her head in her hands while both Pete and Sans laughed at her embarrassment. Why had Sans asked her that?!? Was he asking because he was interested in her?!? Not only was it basically impossible to believe that anyone would see her in that way, but she had no interest in him like that! What was she suppose to do now?! How could this get any worse!!

“SANS!”

She didn’t bother to lift her head as Papyrus came marching over, the sound of a tray getting angrily dumped on the table, “I THOUGHT YOU WERE GOING TO BE NICE!”

“He was Papyrus.” Pete reassured him, his tone teasing, “Y/n just embarrassed because I think you’re brother was asking her out on a date.”

Sans choked on the tea he had just taken a mouthful of while Y/n buried her head into her hands again.

“SANS! IT’S RUDE TO ASK PEOPLE OUT WHO ARE ALREADY DATING!”

Sans cleared his throat of the tea he was obviously still recovering from, before hurriedly saying, “i-i wasn’t paps!”

“And I don’t think she dating anyone.” Pete added, a curious tone now in his voice.

Y/n looked up to glare at Pete, but quickly got distracted as she saw Papyrus gaping at her, his mouth hanging open, his eyes shimmering.

Confused and concerned, she asked, “What’s-“

*Ring-Ring*

With a start, Y/n felt her phone ring in her pocket, quickly fetching it out and looking at the number.

It wasn’t one she knew.

While Sans was whipping his front with the towel Papyrus had passed him as he slowly sat down on a chair Pete had pulled for him, still staring at Y/n, Y/n turned away and answered the call.

“Hello, this is Y/n L/n, how can I help you?”

“Um, yes. Is this the book lady from the convention who said she was interested in working with monsters to create a hybrid recipe cooking book?”

Y/n quickly turned sheepishly to the others, mouthed the words ‘Sorry’, before she stood up and walked outside to take the call.

“Yes it is. You wouldn’t happen to be the cat monster working the booth, would you?”

The person on the phone sighed heavily, “Yeah, that’s me. My name is Felix, but I’m calling on behalf of my boss-“

Another voice called angrily out in his background, “Tell them to hurry up! I’ve been standing here for hours now! If she’s not here in the next five minutes, I’m leaving!”

Felix continued, hurriedly, “I’m- we’re actually standing in the front of your shop, hoping to talk you about this in person.”

“Why didn’t you call ahead?!” she asked, hurriedly running back inside. She had always wanted to be part of the process that produced and publish a book, and if this guy was looking to make her a co-author, she couldn’t pass this up! Giving her card had really been a stab in the dark, and not the first time she had tried to impress authors when she met them.

Add to the fact it was about monster and human food and cooking, and with everything going on with Papyrus, the timing just couldn’t be anymore perfect!

“My boss isn't really used to having to make appointments.”

Rolling her eyes, Y/n quickly pulled out her wallet and left a large note on the table, collected her things before haphazardly waving everyone goodbye as she ran out of the café, towards the bus stop. “Well, look, it’s going to take me awhile to get back, can you stay there for another ten minutes?”

“I’ll-er, I’ll just tell the boss you’re just around the corner.” Felix's tone got noticeably lower, “it’s easier than giving him a specific time.”

“Noted.” She said, dryly.

She didn’t notice that Papyrus hadn’t taken his eyes off her, not even as she rounded the street corner and was gone.

~*~

“There you are!”

Y/n stared at the large metal box she had mistakenly taken for street art folding its arms in a huff, her eyes leaving the orange cat monster she had met before.

Now she wished she had taken more notice, as the metal box rolled towards her, its screen flashing red as its robotic voice screeched out, “What kind of business are you running here? It’s the afternoon and you’re store is closed?!”

“E-excuse?” she stared at him, completely taken aback.

But the metal box was already waving his hand in a dismissive manner, moving towards Felix, “Are you sure about this darling?”

Felix looked quickly away from Y/n to nod nervously at the box. “Y-yeah, th-this is the human.”

At a complete lost for words or an appropriate response, Y/n instead moved to her store’s door, unlocking and opening it wide. “Please come in.”

She held open the door as the metal box rolled in, closely followed by Felix, who threw her an apologetic look.

“Why do you have no employees, darling?” asked the metal box, already looking around.

Y/n closed the door behind her, making her way towards her front desk, “Because I like running my business personally. Look, we’ve only just-“

The metal box traced a finger along a shelf, collecting dust and interrupting her, “If you had some employees, perhaps this place would be in better condition.” He turned to see Y/n hurriedly looking away, trying to remain professional.

“Perhaps you right.” She said, through clenched teeth.

There was a moment of awkward silence, before the metal box scoffed, and began to gesture around her shop, “I’m not sure what kind of person decorates their shop like this, but I don’t think it speaks much about your taste. Maybe if you spruced up the place, I’d be feeling more inclined working with you. You should really consider letting me redecorate and rebrand your shop, then you would most assuredly get more monster customs.” He spun around to look at her, a hand resting on his side, “After all, monsters are the ones with the money, right?”

Y/n didn’t trust her mouth to be civil, so instead, she nodded. If this jerk had been any other human, she would have shown him the door by now. But the fact he was monster, working on a cooking book no less….thoughts of how nice it would be to bring drafts and asking for recipes from Papyrus, of actually publishing his cooking advice and tips, and giving him the first printed book, enter her mind.

She held her tongue.

The metal box wasn’t done yet, however, as he wheeled himself over to a nearby shelf, pulling out books. “You’ve got too many human authors and not enough monster books here, none of which are eye catching or appealing.” He wheeled himself away, further looking around the room, “Maybe you could convince me you actually want to work with me, and by extension the monster community, if you had books that supported that.”

“Okay, that’s enough!” Y/n slammed her hands down on her countertop, glaring at the box she was five seconds from throwing out

Insulting her lack of employees, she could handle; she knew she was crazy not to hire anyone, and because she hadn’t, the store wasn’t as clean as it should be!

Insult her store's looks, that was fine too; she already knew her style was very classic and hardly up to the latest trend, with plenty of room for improvement!

But no one insulted her books or implied that she only picked authors based on race! It was true the monsters authors were rare, but that was because there were so few of them publishing, and what was out there mostly talked about their time Underground or was just poorly layed out…just like his dumb book! If there was a book on her selves, she knew it was a good book, and worthy of recommendation to readers, and she’d be damned if she sold a flawed book just so that she could appear unbiased!

Pointing a finger at him, she demanded, “How many books did you sell at the convention, tin can?!”

The mental box looked startled at being addressed so aggressively, but he quickly recovered, “What kind of tone is that to take-“

“Guessing by your lack of an answer, I’m going to say bugger all!” she gestured to her books, “I’ve sold every book in here at least ten times over! I always make sure I know what I’m selling and I only ever make recommendations I can stand behind!” She folded her arms angrily, “If you want to question my motives, I can’t stop you, but don’t you dare imply that I allow the author's race to play in any part of what I consider makes a worthwhile book!”

The metal box’s screen was rapidly switching from red to yellow, and it looked like she had malfunctioned him. Still angry, but concerned, she looked to Felix, who had been standing back, watching the whole thing objectively.

Suddenly, the metal box’s screen went dark, and he wheeled himself to look directly at her, his front cavity popping open as he reached inside with one of his hands, grabbing something as he moved closer to her.

Before she could panic further, he pulled out the most lovely bunch of flowers she had ever seen (and she had just recently been presented a small garden of them this morning; her front desk was basically a gift store now), the whole arrangement hummed and sparkled with light that seemed to come from within them.

Baffled, she looked to see the metal box’s screen was a pixilated smile. He continued to offer the flower until she gingerly took them from him, watching as, once his hand was free, he did a little twirl with it, before bowing slightly.

“My dear, my deepest and most sincerest apologies, but I had to be sure you were everything Felix promised!”

“Wh-what?”

The metal box stood up, offering his hand, “My name is Mettaton, and I am so very glad to meet you!”

Still confused, Y/n offered her hand to the monster, shocked that, instead of shaking her hand like she expected, he actually brought it up to his screen, mimicking a kiss.

Blushing, she stuttered, “Y-Y/n. Y/n L/n.”

“Charmed, and,” he dropped her hand and it he pressed the back of his hand to his screen, “forgive me for my absolutly disgraceful behaviour!” He turned back to her, bowing again, “I had to be sure that I wasn’t about to sign up with another ‘yes’ human.” He sighed heavily, “I’ve all but ruined my book industry due to my poor judge of character, I’m afraid.”

“Y-you've had problems with human publishers?” she asked, putting the flower gently on her table

“Oh my, yes! So many times I’ve been assured that my books are the absolute best, that EVERYONE would just simply want a copy. “ He sighed dramatically, “They blinded me with flattery, telling me what I wanted to hear, but not what I needed.” He stuck out his hand towards her, imploringly, “But you, my dear, spoke against me, actually had the guts to put your foot down! That’s the type of attitude I need! If you agree to help me, to guide me towards success, I would be willing to split the profits with you fifty-fifty!”

Beaming at the very prospect, she looked to the flowers shyly, “well, what do you want from me, exactly?” She looked up, “I mean, what are the terms?”

Mettaton waved a hand, “Oh, I’ll have people hammer out the details, but what I’ve been dying to do is introduce monster life into the human home!” He gestured to Felix, “I’ve had poor Felix here attending booth after booth at different human conventions, just trying to sell any of my failed books, to get the word out there!”

“What about bookstores?”

Mettaton laughed bitterly, “My dear, I wouldn’t be here if that had worked! None of my books actually sold well enough to justify all the resources it took to make them, being sold in the ‘clearance’ sections! What cheek!”

He sighed dramatically, before pressing on, “No, what I need, what I want you to do, is help me rewrite, revamp and redesign all my books so that I can actually sell them!”

Y/n rubbed the back of her neck, awkwardly, “Well, one of the problems, as I saw it with your cooking book at least, was the recipes were rather…terrible.”

“Then find new ones if you have to. Look deary,” he gently grabbed her hands, holding them up “I’m offering resources, money and anything else that you need, but what I would be hiring you for is to help me produce the type of books that humans will want to read! You would have total, creative control! If you can do that, you’d be doing the monster community a great service! Think of all the humans who still don’t understand or trust monsters, and what reading about them would do for their understanding about us?”

Y/n beamed, her chest swelling with pride as she was already starting formalising what sort of layout she would use with a new cooking book in her mind…until she thought about her shop and what little time she had to spare.

“I wouldn’t be able to do any of this quickly.” She waved a hand vaguely around her shop, “I have to keep my business's interest a priority.”

“As it should be!” hummed Mettaton, “Which is why I’ll pay the salaries of any additional employees you need!” He reached over and dragged Felix over, “You can even have Felix here for your own personal use!”

She backed up, waving her hands, “I don’t need a personal assistant.” She looked apologetically at the indifferent monster, “Besides, I think Felix should get a say in this.”

Mettaton threw an arm around Felix’s shoulders, “Oh, but he would simply be happy to help you!” he turned to face Felix, “Felix, darling, if you agreed to help Y/n here do whatever she needs help with, I’ll pay you double what you're making now!”

Felix flinched, before he thought about it, “Work with someone other than you? Not wear this uniform anymore” He smiled softly, “I think I could agree with that.”

“Excellent!” Mettaton turned to her, “Now Felix here is very smart, very resourceful and absolutely vital to running my day to day. But I’ll make do if it means I can get that first book from you quicker.” He looked at her quizzically (that is to say, his screen formed into a question mark), “Assuming that’s okay with you?”

“Well, if it’s okay with Felix, I don’t see a problem with it…”

“Wonderful!” Mettaton turned to leave, walking out the door with another flair, “Well, adieu, my little bookworm! I’ll have Felix keep in contact and get back to you soon, bye darling!”

Felix followed behind Mettaton leaving, turning awkwardly towards her, gave a brief wave, seemed to regret doing that, and walked off, hunching his shoulders.

Y/n watched the pair leaving, walking over to the window to see them getting into what looked like a glittery pink limo parked illegally in a loading zone further down the street. Soon, the two monsters and the limbo left, leaving her reeling with just how quickly that had gone.

_‘Maybe it’s a celebrity thing?’_

She knew she had read his books before, long before seeing them at the cooking expo, but that had been when monsters had first appeared on the surface, and she hadn’t be impressed with what she had read. No, she had order in another monster’s work, a fellow book lover who had actually looked after the monster’s library in their town of Snowdin (monster names for things always brought a smile to her face), that monster's grasp of proper literary structure told a far profound story of monster life than the bosting robot that barely acknowledge monsters as anything more than an audience in his life.

Googling him, the one thing she quickly noticed was just how popular he was with monsters, and how that popularity wasn’t easily transferring across. Judging by all his appearance though, it certainly wasn’t for the lack of trying.

Figuring that she should actually ask a monster, she called the only other monster’s number she had in her phone.

“Papyrus, do you know anything about a metal box monster called Mettaton?”

“THE GREATEST ACTOR AND SECOND BEST MONSTER TO EVER EXIST!? WHY ARE YOU ASKING? DID YOU WANT TO BORROW ALL MY COMPLETE COLLECTION OF HIS ENTIRE WORKS?” Papyrus’s tone got noticeable smug, “I HAPPEN TO OWN ALL OF THEM! EVEN THAT TERRIBLE GYTMAS ONE WHERE THE TAMMIES WERE SINGING FOR NINE HOURS.”

Laughing she shook her head as she looked for another vase to put the latest flowers into, “No, no. I was asking because he came over here and he-“

A shrieking, squeeling noise blasted through her phone’s speaker, slightly deafening her.

“I’M COMING OVER RIGHT NOW!!”

“Is he really that big of a deal?”

But Papyrus wasn’t listening, the sounds of the phone getting waved around as he spoke to the people around him, “PETE! I’M HAVING AN EARLY DAY!”

“S-sure boy, if that’s what you want. But we were just in the mid-“

“what’s going on paps?”

“Y/N’S MEETING METTATON RIGHT NOW!! THAT’S WHO SHE LEFT TO SEE!”

“We tried telling you it wasn’t-“

But apparently Papyrus wasn’t listening, as the sound of the cafe’s door closing behind him and his pounding feet could soon be heard.

“I’M COMING Y/N!” he called out (the sound of a shrieking, startled lady quickly passed as he kept running).

Smiling, realising that Papyrus had actually forgotten to hang up his phone, Y/n instead ended the call, taking a beat with herself on how long it would take him to run here.

If Papyrus was reacting like this with just a name, would he get a real kick out of working on Mettaton's book with her? She thought about the night they had stayed up, looking and reading all the books he had collected. She already knew he was more than up to the challenge…and maybe it would life his spirits. Maybe this is what he needed?

Deciding, she pulled out her phone again and called the last number she had that belong to a monster.

“Already buddy? That was quick, we just left.”

“Hi again Felix. Listen, I was wondering if I could hire someone to help me with the book?”

 

Next Chapter is called: Up the Spiral staircase

 

** FanArt (I know, right?!) **

**InkforOne-**[Their first meeting!](https://inkforone.deviantart.com/art/Now-How-About-That-Friendship-Run-734917048) _and_ [Their second meeting!!](https://inkforone.deviantart.com/art/Or-a-Friendship-Meander-is-Fine-736588123)


	12. Up the Spiral Staircase

Papyrus was devasted when he finally arrived, breathing heavily, and realised that Mettaton had already left, but he did freak out when Y/n passed him the phone with Metatton on the line for him, his face warping from confusion to absolute delight as he danced around her shop, startling a customer. When Mettaton had asked (like Y/n had asked him to do) if his biggest fan would be willing to work with her on his cooking book, Papyrus had stopped dead, his mouth hanging open. Y/n had to actually pry the phone away from his rigid grasp, apologising to Mettaton for Papyrus’s apparent mental crash. When she was about to hang up, saying that she would let Metatton know Papyrus’s answer after he recovered, he instantly managed to shake himself out of whatever had crashed him, screaming about how this was the greatest day of his life.

Y/n and Metatton took that to mean yes, he would be okay with working on the cooking book.

Papyrus had then continued to dance around her store, scaring the last of her customers away. Knowing that Papyrus had energy for days and not really willing to hurt her business, Y/n had managed to grab a hold of Papyrus long enough to explain what Metatton had to her; that they were going to write a monster-human fusion cooking book, under his name. Before Papyrus eyes got much bigger and his bones rattled so hard from sheer excitement he was in danger of becoming a rattlesnake over a skeleton, Y/n had suggested that they make plans to meet in a week’s time, bringing along all their ideas and drafts. Papyrus had eagerly agreed, exclaiming that he already had so many ideas, and thanking Y/n extensively when she passed him a spare notebook and pen she had.

Seeing an opportunity and remembering something, Y/n had stopped Papyrus from leaving her store in his haste to get started, saying that, now they were once again book partners and both employees of Metatton, she still needed to take a photo of this month’s Employee of the Month. Papyrus had both beamed and blushed, but still posed against her books, flexing for her camera as she took the photo. After she assured him she would hang it where everyone would see that he was the very best employee, she had been spun hugged, before he ran down the street, still celebrating as he called as many people as he could, as fast as he could.

Looking at her latest photo, it made her day, seeing how happy Papyrus was in it; his demeanour from this morning to now was quite a transformation.

Keeping her word, she closed her store earlier that day, just so she could get the photo physically printed, complete with a nice little frame, hastily writing ‘Employee of the Month’ on a bit of paper she attached to the frame. Not as good as an actual plack, but it did lift her spirits to have Papyrus grinning behind her front desk and her.

Early the next day and after she came back from her jog with a still over-the-moon Papyrus, Felix was standing in front of her store, struggling under a tower of paperwork. Helping the cat monster inside, Y/n listened as he explained that this was her contract and commission for writing Metatton’s book. When she eyed the tower distastefully, expressing that she didn’t feel comfortable signing stacks of paper taller than her most extensive dictionary, Felix had reassured her that only a small portion of the paper actually protrade to the cooking cook. As he explained, separating just the paper she would need to read and sign for the cooking book alone, Metatton was a monster with boundless energy, limitless ambition and dreams, and required no sleep, just a power socket. In fact, the fact that there was only one paper pile this tall, was apparently great restraint on his part, if Felix was to be believed.

Y/n was still not happy about signing anything just then, to which Felix had shrugged, explaining that there was no rush and that, from experience, most of it would be about defining products, advertisement and imergy legal ownership. Not interested in any of that, but still needing to read over for herself, Y/n had verbally agreed that Metatton was free to place his imagery where he felt like it.

“Imagery is very important to Metatton,” Felix said, glancing away.

Not knowing how to respond, Y/n had quietly tucked away the paperwork into her bottom draw (rearranging the pile so that she could actually close her draw again), before showing Felix around her shop.

One thing she picked up very quickly about Felix was how smart he was…yet how it felt like he wasn’t. Case in point, as she explained the different sections to him, giving him typical questions he was bound to get from customers, he walked behind her like he was in a daze, only listlessly listening. Asking him to repeat what she said, however, and not only did he repeat every word correctly, but he also elaborated on the reasons for why she had set up her shop like this, commenting of its effective use of space and subjects flow and relevance.

Customers picked up on that too. As Y/n sat back, still reading over the contract for just the one book days later, she listened in as a customer was asking Felix about what type of children’s book she should get for her gifted niece. Felix listened to everything she said, but he looked bored, flatly disinterested. The women, sure that Felix hadn’t understood anything, began to repeat herself, really emphasising particular parts of her request.

Yet Felix listened again, still with that disinterested expression.

Just as the woman was about to walk out, Y/n walked over to her, and gave her several suggestions. Felix was quick to add in another book that she had forgotten about, and soon, the customer was walking towards the children’s section, a scape of paper and several book names to browse through.

“Felix,” Y/n started, looking over at him, “You should at least try nodding and smiling when talking to customers. You know, let them know that you’re listening?”

“That’s just what Metatton says.” sighed Felix, looking away.

There was an awkward pause.

“H-how did you meet Metatton?” she asked, curious.

Felix turned to her, “You mean, how did a sad sack like myself ever manage to associate himself with a star like Metatton?”

“No.” Y/n said, flatly, “I’m just asking how Felix met Metatton. No adjectives.”

It seemed like he wasn’t going to answer, so she took a step back. “Nevermind, you don’t have to-“

“I-I liked improv. I liked how unexpected and unpredictable it was.” Felix said, tracing a claw along the table top, “I thought I was going to a big star one day. Get admired and adored like everyone else gets…even if it’s just from, like, one person.”

He looked at his hands, held up in frustration, “I know that I’m smart, but I just got so bored all the time! I couldn’t stand pursuing further education, so I turned to the Arts, looking for something, anything, that would stop the monotony of daily life!”

“That’s why…I kinda like working with Metatton.” He looked over at her, “I mean, who would ever give half of their profits and want to sign on multiple books with a human they just met?”

“Kinda?” she asked, teasing him slightly, “Because I distinctly remember how you were at the convention.”

Felix scoffed, leaning on the front desk, “It’s not my fault that people only like you when you’re useful to them! It’s so frustrating to talk to people and hear the same thing, over and over again, knowing how fake it all is!”

Y/n could understand that. Afterall, what was more terrifying then small talk? It was one of the reasons she wasn’t particularly fuss that she hardly left this store or her home for anything for long periods at a time. It was one of the main argument she ever had with Matt, him always trying to push her out of her comfort zone, her, convinced that she was just going to be bored, that people would find her equally boring.

Then she thought about Papyrus…and how ‘boring’ was one word that certainly didn’t describe him. He seemed to like her. He, the most non-boring thing in the entire world, actually called her his best friend. That had to count for something, right? He had only been in her life for a few months now, and here she was, talking to a cat monster while reading over a contract to write a book for a metal box. She still occasionally thought back to the morning after meeting him, thinking about how close she had been from chickening out and not seeing him again.

None of this would have happened if she had stayed in her comfort zone.

Smiling softly, she leaned onto her front desk, next to Felix, as she looked at her hands. “I get that. I mean, meeting new people is all so…tedious and awkward.” She looked over to see him watching her, “But if you don’t try something, anything, new, then nothing changes.”

He looked behind her, eyeing Papyrus ’s beaming photo. “We can’t all be like that guy you know?”

She chortled, an image of a whole world filled with only Papyrus. “Oh god no! And that’s a good thing! I like that people are different, that two books of the same topic can both be worth reading.” She reached over and picked up a notebook, looking over it, “But every book has to have the same things; paper, covers, a spine that holds it all together.” She grinned over at him, “I get that people, especially everyday conversations can be tedious, but you can’t complain that people are boring if you’re going to criticise the things our society has in place so that we’re all polite to each other. Depth and meaning with people comes from getting to know them, page by page.”

Felix eyed her, before looking at the notebook, “Could you have tortured that metaphor any further?”

She chuckled, “Probably. Try asking me about the meaning of life.”

“No!”

Giggling, she pushed herself away, “You said you like improv?” he nodded, “Well then, try asking questions and see if you can’t guess people’s responses. Not only will you look like you interested, but it’ll be a good way of testing just how predictable people are...or if you’re just assuming things.”

She left him with that thought, walking back to her abandoned contract.

She couldn’t say that Felix improved much with his customer service during the first week, but she did notice that he began to ask her an odd and occasional question, along with her customers.

~*~

On the Saturday Papyrus and her had arranged to meet up later in the evening, he had surprised her by asking if Sans could come along too, citing that his brother appeared to be interested in getting to know her better. Still somewhat sceptical, yet eager to make that a reality, she had jokingly said that they might as well stay over for dinner and make it a slumber party.

Forgetting that Papyrus just didn’t understand sarcasm and dry humour, and unable to say properly no, Y/n had arrived in front of her store later on to Felix, who kept asking her why she was so pale. Blurting something about life choices and regrets, she had quickly disappeared upstairs to her apartment, leaving Felix to open the store by himself. He had listened as, all day, the sounds of her hurrying from one side of her apartment to the other, echoed from the store's roof.

Now she sat by a still confused Felix, who watched her watch the clock, counting down the minutes in the late afternoon.

_‘I-I’ve never had anyone up there! Just my family! Oh god, what have I done?!’_

Before she could contemplate locking the door and pretending no one was home, her store's door banged open, and in walked Papyrus, Sans trailing after him, both carrying backpacks.

Quickly, he dropped his bag and ran over to her, “Y/N!” he cried, picking her up in a spinning hug.

“H-hey P-Papyrus.” She stuttered, awkwardly patting his back.

“WHERE’S MATT THIS EVENING?” Papyrus asked, his grip on her briefly tightening.

“Probably at his home?”

“HE DOESN’T LIVE WITH YOU?”

“N-no? He just works next door Papyrus.”

He hummed happily, “GOOD! THEN WE DON’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT BEING QUIET TONIGHT FOR THE SAKE OF OTHERS!”

Y/n mind went where she desperately didn’t want it to go, making her flush in shame and embarrassment.

When he dropped her back to the floor, Y/n watched as Sans walked over to Felix, his hand outstretched.

“hey there felix. how ya been?”

Felix eyed Sans’s hand, suspiciously, “Paranoid of skeletons who offer handshakes with farting gags, you?”

Sans chuckled, holding up his hand as he took off the whoopee cushion, “realising that i might have just about pranked every monster in the underground by now.”

Before Felix could respond, Papyrus brightened, “OH!” he ran over to his bag and pulled out a familiar box, “I BROUGHT OVER TWISTER!”

“Why Twister?” asked Felix, looking between Papyrus beaming face to Y/n’s neon face in between her fingers as she quickly hid her face.

“BECAUSE IT’S Y/N’S FAVOURITE GAME!” proclaimed Papyrus, confidently.

Sans laughed heartily, as Y/n spluttered, “I-it is n-not!”

“OF COURSE IT IS Y/N! WHY ELSE ARE YOU TURNING RED? YOU ONLY EVER DO THAT WHEN YOU’RE HAVING FUN!”

Ignoring Sans continued laughter, Y/n turned to Felix, “Okay! I think I’m ready to get this train wreck on the roll! I’ll see you on Monday?”

Felix nodded, eyeing her in somewhat concern. “You sure you’re okay there buddy?”

She nodded, her blush still very much present as she watched him gather his things.

She walked him to the front door, patting his back gently. “Thank you for really stepping up for me today. Is there anything I can do to pay you back?”

Felix shook his head, “No, it looked like you were busy.” He shrugged, “Besides, looking after the store isn’t that hard.”

“You’re getting better with your customer service every day.” she noted.

Now it was his turn to blush, “W-well, let’s say I’ve found a way to actually make it interesting, for a change.”

She laughed softly, surprising both herself and the monster when she hugged him. Regretting her impulsive act, she blushed and looked at the floor. “S-see you on Monday, Felix.”

If she had been looking up, she would have seen he was doing the exact same thing she was. “S-sure.”

He quickly left.

Locking her door and flipping the sign close, she turned to see both skeletons watching her.

“What?”

Sans shrugged, moving to look around the room.

Papyrus eyes fell off to the side, his fists holding his bag’s shoulder strap tightly. “IT’S NOTHING Y/N.”

“You sure?”

He nodded.

“hey paps,” Sans called out, looking over the framed picture of Papyrus still hanging behind her front desk, “what’s this?”

“AH! MY ‘EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH’ AWARD!” He ran over and posed next to his photo, a spitting image, “I GOT IT FOR MY SERVICES TO THE TEXTUAL CONTENT BOOKSTORE SCOUTING TASK!”

 _‘He remembers what I called it?’_ Y/n thought, moving to her bookcase panel, bending down and unclipping the locking mechanism, _‘I don’t even remember what I called! I was just making it up on the fly.’_

“Y/N,” Papyrus asked, noticing her bending just next to him, fiddling with something he couldn’t see, “WHAT ARE YOU-?“

The bookcase swung forward, revealing a spiral staircase the lend to her apartment above; the only way to get to it without climbing in through a second-story window.

Both skeletons gaped at the hidden staircase, before Papyrus cried out, “YOU HAVE A SECRET ENTRANCE TO YOUR APARTMENT?!?”

She laughed, gesturing for them to follow her up, “Replaced the old stairs and had contractors build a wall.” She looked over her shoulder, “It keeps customers from just wandering into my house, looking for the bathroom or something.”

Papyrus looked over his shoulder as Sans followed him up the spiral staircase, behind Y/n, “ISN’T THIS JUST THE COOLEST SANS?!? IT’S JUST LIKE HOME!”

Sans chuckled, “nothing secret about a door people can’t see from the front paps.”

Y/n couldn’t keep the smile off her face; this staircase had never been appraised or appreciated by anyone in her family. Her sisters had called it a waste of money, and mum had called it impractical.

 _‘I’m unappreciated in my time’_ she thought, sighing loudly.

Before long, the three reached the second floor; her apartment. It was a single bedroom, studio apartment, where the only two rooms that were separated by either walls or a door was the kitchen and bathroom. Her queen-sized bed sat towards one side, while her living room, reading corner and office area sat on the other side. She had many odd geek and nerdom plushies and pillows (hastily chucked into a dark corner), with many action figures sitting along overstuffed bookshelves. Her gaming system and movies were neatly organised and the whole area smelled very strongly on cleaning products and recent vacuuming.

She wasn’t a neat person, but neither was she a slob; it had taken her almost all day just to organise her apartment to create the illusion that she could be adult and keep a place organised. She had even gone out and bought milk!

…and yet, she still felt embarrassed as Papyrus and Sans moved about the room, looking at various things.

“Anyone like a drink?” she squeaked, moving to the kitchen, “Food? Snacks?”

“I BELIEVE THOSE ARE THE SAME THING.” Papyrus said, still looking around in excitement.

“R-right.”

Wishing to distract from her mistake and looking for an out at playing ‘host’, Y/n turned sharply and walked over to her office area, picking up her latest notebook, now filled with ideas and concepts. “I-I guess we should get started.” She said, walking to her living room table as it was the largest table she owned.

“OF COURSE!” Papyrus quickly dropped his bag against the nearby wall, fetching out the notebook she had given him, before hurriedly joining her.

Sans placed his bag next to his brother, before sitting on the three-seater couch, settling in.

“You can help yourself to anything in the kitchen guys.” Y/n said, looking at both of them, before looking specifically at Sans, “You can read any of the books I have up here, or you can go downstairs and grab something from there, if you’d like.”

Sans’s eyebrow shot up, before he shrugged, pushing himself up and pursuing her books, probably noting her games, movies and action figures.

Meanwhile, Papyrus launched into his notes, listing out a long list of recipes he thought every book should have. Y/n had struggled to explain that, in cooking books, it was practical to have the recipes organised in the order they were typically consumed throughout a day….and why spaghetti didn’t belong at the front.

Sans had managed to find a book, once again settling back into the couch and flipping it open as Papyrus launched into his counter-argument, expressing his belief that spaghetti was such a perfect meal, it could and should be consumed at any point of the day, and thus, it should go first. Y/n countered that this was Metatton’s monster-human fusion book, and that, until humans changed their minds about it, spaghetti was just not a meal they’d expect to see on their plates at eighth in the morning. While the two went backwards and fords, hashing out a basic outline and recipes that everyone could agree to and enjoy, Sans alternated between quietly chuckling to himself and grinning, his eyes very much not on the text before him. Before long, however, he fell asleep, apparently still chuckling and grinning, even in sleep.

~*~

As the sun set outside, Papyrus and Y/n agreed to put the drafting plans on hold and actually tackle the issue of combining monster food with human food. She wasn’t at all surprised to hear him suggest that the demonstrate involve pasta.

Although she was surprised to him bring out a small cooler from his bag after they put away their notes, claiming he just so happened to have all the right ingredients here.

“Just so happen?” she asked, looking over at him, smirking.

He looked suspiciously around the room, avoiding her gaze, “Y-YES! THAT’S MY STORY AND I’M STICKING TO IT!”

Chuckling, she looked away from Papyrus entering her small kitchen to Sans who was just waking up, stretching with a yawn.

When he saw her watching him, he grinned playfully, “guess I was pretty _bone_ tired.”

“YOU SAY THAT EVERYTIME YOU WAKE UP I SWEAR!” screamed Papyrus from the kitchen.

Quietly chuckling together over Papyrus infuriated rage, the two stragglers moved into the kitchen.

While a lot smaller than she knew the skeletons were used to, her kitchen was properly equipped, with enough space left over for a small kitchen table, which Sans sat himself down at. Looking away from him, Y/n moved over instead to Papyrus, watching him pull out the ingredients that went into a typical bolognese pasta dish.

“Where are the monster ingredients?” she asked, noticing the cooler was empty and all the ingredients looked normal.

“THERE ARE TWO WAYS MONSTER HAVE THEIR DISHES.” Papyrus said, sagely, “THEY CAN EITHER EAT FOOD THAT IS GROWN DIRECTLY FROM MAGICAL SOURCES-“

“like how the underground’s soil was, after years of having monster’s essence trapped within a confined space.” added Sans, grimly.

“-OR ONE CAN INFUSE HUMAN FOOD WITH MAGIC.”

“And if you have either of those things, the food disappears when you eat it?” Y/n asked, fascinated.

“IT DOESN'T JUST DISAPPEAR! YOUR SOUL ABSORBS IT DIRECTLY.” Papyrus looked thoughtful, “ALTHOUGH, HOW MUCH MAGIC YOU ADD TO HUMAN FOOD DOES CHANGE THE EFFECT.”

“To what?”

Papyrus grinned at her, “WHY, YOU CAN MAKE THE FOOD LINGER, LIKE IT DOES WITHOUT MAGIC, BUT KEEPING THE EFFECTS OF MAGICALLY INFUSED FOOD!" He posed, “I’VE ACTUALLY BEEN PLAYING AROUND WITH THIS CONCEPT FOR A LONG TIME NOW. I, WITH MY INCREDIBLE TALENTS, HAVE DISCOVERED A WAY TO BOTH KEEP MONSTER FULL LONGER, AND ALSO GIVE HUMANS MORE ENERGY!"

“it’s actually quite groundbreaking.” Sans added, grinning at his brother, “a lot of other monsters are discovering the same thing.”

Papyrus waved his hand dismissively, “I’M SURE OTHERS MAY HAVE DISCOVERED THIS…BUT I KNOW I WAS THE FIRST!”

“I have to see this!”

Quickly, Y/n walked over to the fridge and grabbed two eggs, handing one to each of the skeletons. “Please, a demonstration.”

Sans looked at his egg lazily, before shaking his head, handing it back to her. “kid, monster magic is more complicated and interwoven than that. if i infused that, you’d be feeling what i’m feeling right now; chronically lazy.”

Papyrus shuddered, while Y/n stared at the egg. “Y-you transfer your emotions to food?”

“nah. see, you’re separating the two again. monsters, our souls and our magic, it’s basically the same thing.” Sans looked fondly over at his brother, “monsters are generally happy, loving creatures, but only the best can infuse true fulfilment and contentment like my bro can.”

Blushing, Papyrus looked to the egg in his hand, “LIKE THIS.”

Y/n moved in for a closer look, expecting/ hoping for some sort of light show.

So it was rather disappointing when, as Papyrus beamed at her, he offered the egg after nothing visible happened. Taking it, she looked it over, seeing nothing different. It was the exact same egg it had been before; indistinguishable from the one in her other hand.

Papyrus must have noticed her off-put expression, because he plucked the egg from her hand, before turning to the stove, placing a frying pan on and letting it heat up. Once the pan was buttered up, Papyrus cracked the egg, quickly frying it before serving it on the plate she handed him.

“TRY IT.” he insisted.

Somewhat dubious, Y/n grabbed a fork from her draws and feed herself some egg.

It was just a plain egg; no different in flavour or texture then what she was already use to. But under that was a duel feeling of fondness and nostalgia. Suddenly, she found herself thinking of all the times she had cooked breakfast as a child, back at her family home.

“how do you feel kid?” Sans asked, also curious, eyeing his brother.

“I-I’ve got the same feeling I had when I was a child, eating pancakes with my sister.” She looked at Papyrus, in wonder, “I-I don’t think I would have noticed if I hadn’t been expecting something!”

Beaming, Papyrus gestured to her egg, “NOW, IT’S YOUR TURN!”

“Excuse me?”

Papyrus crossed his arms, “THIS WHOLE BOOK IS MEANT TO BE FOR BOTH MONSTERS AND HUMANS.” He gestured to the egg again, “WE HAVE TO AT LEAST SEE IF HUMANS ARE CAPABLE OF OUR RECIPES.”

“H-How?!”

“WELL, FIRST, YOU HEAT UP THE PAN-“

“I meant, how am I suppose to do what you just did?!” she looked at the egg, “I don’t even fully understand what you did that, let alone how to do it myself.”

“OH, THAT’S EASY.” Papyrus lifted her hands, making her claps the egg between her hands, “JUST FOCUS ON A REALLY STRONG EMOTION AND PROJECT THAT INTO THE EGG. I FIND THINKING OF A PARTICULAR VIVID AND EMOTIONAL MEMORY HELPS.”

Still dubious, especially how expressing emotions wasn’t her strong suit, Y/n closed her eyes and searched for a strong emotion or memory.

Her life was pretty consistent, with her highs and lows never really peaking to what she would call vivid….or at least, that how it was before she met Papyrus.

Now all she seemed to be feeling were vivid emotions.

Cheating, wanting to at least see if this was even possible for her, Y/n looked back on all the times her face had burned red in embarrassment, all the times she snorted in side-splitting laughter.

….how her heart broke after seeing Papyrus, the tower of energy and optimism, crumbling in front of her.

She opened her eyes, looking around. Both brothers were watching her, a curious expression on their faces.

“What?” she asked, blushing slightly under their scrutiny.

Sans shrugged, while Papyrus looked away, “it’s nothing kid. i think you’re forgetting the monsters can sense souls.”

“You were reading my mind?!” Y/n cried, instantly trying to think if she had ever thought of anything insulting, hurriedly followed by thoughts of nothing but apologies.

Sans held up his hand, “easy kid! no, we can’t read mind or thoughts,  we can, however, sense how flustered you just became.” He winked at her, “relax, it’s not a strong as i think you think it is. honestly, you get more info from just looking at your face.”

“Oh.” Y/n looked away, blushing.

Moving to the stove, she cracked the egg into the pan, forgetting to butter it. Scrapping what she could onto a plate, she turned to see both brothers at the table, watching her. Feeling rather exposed, she placed the plate between them, offering forks.

Sans expression changed as he ate, morphing from surprise, fondness then…guilt?

Papyrus, meanwhile looked like he was trying to taste for a particular ingredient, his face twisting in concentration.

“So?” she asked, wait baited breath.

Papyrus spoke first, “I THINK I CAN TASTE A HINT OF YOUR MAIGC…IT’S VERY WEAK THOUGH.” When he noticed her fallen shoulders, he quickly amended, “ALTHOUGH, THAT COULD JUST BECAUSE YOU’RE HUMAN AND THIS IS YOUR FIRST TIME EVER! YOU SHOULD STILL BE REALLY PROUD!”

“I guess.” She looked over to Sans, who was watching her carefully, “What about you Sans.”

After a while, he shrugged, “same for me.” He looked at Papyrus, “but i think it’s more a lack of focus than anything else.”

“THAT'S WHY IT WAS SO CONFUSING! Y/N, WERE YOU TRYING TO INSTIL MULTIPLE OR COMPLEX FEELINGS?” Papyrus asked.

She rubbed the back of her neck, “Was I suppose to only pick one?”

Papyrus groaned, “TELL ME HUMANS KNOW ABOUT EMOTIONAL FOOD BASICS?”

“Papyrus, up until several months after monsters appeared, we humans didn’t believe we had magic, let alone that we can cook with them.”

“WELL, THAT WON’T DO!” Papyrus stood up, “WE CAN’T VERY WELL WRITE OUR BOOK WITHOUT EXPLAINING TO THE HUMAN READERS ABOUT PROPER TECHNIQUE AND CONTROL WITH INFUSING THEIR MAGIC!” He posed, “I GUESS I’LL JUST HAVE TO TEACH YOU MYSELF.”

“Jogs in the morning and cooking lessons at night.” She looked at him, “Sure you’re not going to be sick of seeing me eventually?”

“NEVER!...ASSUMING YOU’RE AVAILABLE, THAT IS?” He looked shyly away, “YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE NOT BUSY WITH OTHER PEOPLE, THAT IS.”

“I’m sure I can arrange at least once every week.” She pointed to the pasta ingredients, still out, “But I guess, in the meantime, I’d better start helping you cook dinner tonight.” She looked over at Sans, who was settling back in his seat, “Is there anything I can get you before I get covered in sauce again?”

“HEY!” Complained Papyrus, “IT WAS NOT MY FAULT THAT SOUFFLÉ EXPLODED!”

Sans chuckled, before replying, “yeah, actually. mind if i help myself to your ketchup?”

“You’re lucky I happen to just pick up one day.” Y/n grinned, handing him the bottle she had brought, specifically for him.

He eyed the bottle, before taking a swig, sitting back as he watched Y/n explain that is was perfectly acceptable not to have an apron in the kitchen, his bother fervently arguing against that flawed logic.

~*~

Dinner was cooked and served in no time, with Papyrus taking special care not to cover her walls, or them, in sauce. While he cooked, he tried to explain the magical side of what he was doing; why certain emotions clashed and should never go together, how to form the strongest, most vivid emotion, and how to stay positive, even when handling onions. Sans had added that, although what type of emotion was supplied to the food affected what the eater experienced, nothing affected the flavour of the food.

Now that she knew what she was looking for, she did notice the warming sensation in her chest had little to do with the pasta, privately wondering how humans would react if they knew monsters cooked like this. There were bound to be people who saw this as a form of brainwashing, and even she was having conflicting emotions about the idea of going in for doughnuts and coming out with something that was infused with a negative emotion.

Vowing to bring this up after she figured exactly where she stood on that issue, and especially not in front of Sans, who she was still getting to know, Y/n suggested a round of a racing video game.

Papyrus had been disappointed, mumbling, “B-BUT I BROUGHT OVER TWISTER.”, but Y/n had claimed that if he beat her, he could pick the next game.

Pumped by the idea of a challenge and cleaning the kitchen with her with renewed vigour, he had proudly announced his impending victory…only to consistently lose.

Badly.

“THIS IS NOT AT ALL HOW DRIVING WORKS!”

Y/n grinned, watching her character pass Papyrus's character, spinning in the grass, “We’ve told you Papyrus, there are no speed limits.”

“I KNOW THAT NOW! I WAS TALKING ABOUT MY CAR SPINNING OUT OF CONTROL BECAUSE OF A BANANA PEEL!!”

“i’m _peeling_ ahead bro.” Sans grinned, the guilty party.

Tossing his control to the side, Papyrus stood up angrily, marching towards the kitchen, “I’M GOING TO COOK DESERT TO MAKE MYSELF FEEL BETTER ABOUT THE FACT THAT MY BEST FRIEND AND MY ONLY BROTHER AND SCHEMING AGAINST ME!”

Sans held up a hand to her, which she hesitantly high-fived, not quite believing the action.

Papyrus huffed angrily, “YOU TWO ARE THE WORST!” before disappearing from sight, the sound of pots and pans getting clanged around.

“Oh jeez, I didn’t think he’d get that upset.” Y/n said, looking away from the game.

Sans shrugged, looking back to the screen, “he’s fine kid. we’ll just give him some space and do something else when he eventually comes back.”

“You sure?” she asked, looking at Sans, conflicted.

He chuckled, “trust me kid; i’ve known him all my life. if there’s one thing we older siblings are good at, it’s riling up our younger bros.” He winked at her, “the second thing we’re good at is calming them back down…but we never really do that properly, do we?”

“I wouldn’t know.” Y/n flatly, “I’m not the oldest kid in my family.”

“oh?” she could see Sans looking at her from the corner of her eye, “what to tell us about them?”

She shrugged, “Not much to say. I’ve got parents, a younger brother and an older sister, all of who live in the state but not close enough that I have to worry about seeing them every day. I had a nice childhood,” she glared at Sans, “despite my sisters taking my dolls and losing my all time favourite book.”

“losing a sibling’s toy, a classic.” Sans nodded, cheekily.

She nudged him, her eyes still glued to the match, “Okay, mister pun master, you turn. What was it like growing up with Papyrus as your sibling?”

Y/n was driving for several seconds before she realised that Sans hadn’t responded. Looking over at him, she saw his face twisted in memory, and she instantly felt regret.

“I-I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to be rude! Please, you don’t have to say if-“

“paps and me really didn’t have anyone else. its sort of just been the two of us…for a really long time now.”

Y/n stared at him, the game now abandoned by both of them.

“I-I’m sorry. I-I didn’t realise.” She whispered.

Sans shrugged, going back to the match, “i sort of had to raise paps myself, still a kid myself actually, but we made it work. i guess that’s why i’m so protective of him; i love him, sure, but i still see his happiness and safety as sort of my number one responsibility.” He turned to look at her, “not only is he my brother, he’s my best friend and i guess you could call him a bit like a son to me?” He shrugged, turning back to the game, “i don’t really think there’s a proper name for what he is to me. all i know is that he’s a key part of my life and existence. something i worry that other people don’t get. to want to know one of us is to get to know both of us.”

“I-I’d like to get to know you better Sans.” She admitted, very quietly.

He chuckled, ruffling her hair, “i know kid.” He looked past her, calling out, “what about you paps? what in on this action?”

Spinning around, Y/n saw Papyrus in near tears, his hands held up in front of his mouth.

Without another word, he rushed over and managed to lift both of them into one big, group hug.

~*~

Papyrus had managed to finish his deserts of honey-maple syrup waffles, covered in ice cream and chocolate before the hug. Drooling, Y/n had agreed to end the video game (because playing meant she’d have to learn to play with her feet, because there was just no way she was choosing video game other this dessert!), instead suggesting a cooking show series she happened to own and like.

Papyrus had thought it was going to be Cooking with Metatton, but was disappointed when her DVD case wasn’t sequenced. Assuring him that he would like the show, she loaded it in, edging herself awkwardly between the two brothers, who were already on the couch.

About halfway through the first episode, Sans began to tell quite jokes to Y/n, who tried not to laugh. Encouraged by her responses, Sans kept pushing, telling both better and worse jokes, until he actually managed to get a snort out of her, much to her embarrassment.

Scolding his brother Papyrus explained that he was trying to watch the show. Then he started talking, critiquing the food and cooking styles with his ’expertise’. Sans jokes only got louder after that, with Y/n jumping on board, bad mouthing and mocking the staged drama the show forced in to up the anti. Papyrus appeared to be not impressed with the pair of them…till he actually laughed himself. Then he flatly denied even being capable of making such a noise, his protest barely heard as Y/n and Sans collapsed to the floor, snorting and laughing like idiots.

Embarrassed, and still in very much in denial, Papyrus strode to the bathroom, claiming that it was time for bed.

Sighing, Y/n and Sans eventually picked themselves up, shutted off the television and packed away the plates. The kitchen was already clean, so Y/n had Sans just left the plates in the sink, future Y/n's problem.

When they came out, when Y/n saw what Papyrus was wearing, she remembered that he had been wearing the exact same thing from their first sleepover.

…only this time, she wasn’t so flustered, so uptight, to be distracted by what she was now seeing.

“Ah yes,” she said, smiling as she took him in, “I had forgotten about the onesie.”

Sans snickered as Papyrus stamped his foot in his spaghetti-patterned onesie, “THIS IS NOT A ONESIE! THESE ARE OVERALLS! WHY DON’T PEOPLE UNDERSTAND THAT?!”

“sure they are paps, sure they are.” Sans lightly teased.

Papyrus did not appreciate that.

Smiling, she turned to Sans, “Sans, would you like to change?”

He grinned, “sure kid.” He began to slowly take off his hoodie, peeling it off sensually.

“Oh my god!” Y/n cried, burying her head in her hands, “I meant, change in the bathroom!”

“SANS! YOU KNOW BETTER THAN YOU MAKE THE HOST FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE! WHAT SORT OF GUEST ARE YOU?!”

Sans chuckled, “my bad. if it helps y/n, i’ve already changed.”

She refused to look up, “I swear, if you tell a ‘bone’ joke…”

Both skeletons spluttered, before Sans reassured her, “n-nothing like that, i promise.”

Trusting him, Y/n raised her head.

Sans gestured vaguely to himself in his sleeping gear, which was just him without his jacket, slippers kicked off. He looked smaller with the hoodie on, somehow less..intimidating? Whatever the case, he was still the jerk who made her blush.

“Really?!”

Sans grinned, gesturing to her, “what about yourself?”

“Let me just grab my gear, and I’ll let you two fight over who sleeps on what side of the bed, cause I'm on the couch.”

“WHAT BED?” Papyrus asked, looking around.

Y/n grabbed her things and quickly walked to her bathroom, point to her bed. “That bed, of course.”

“BUT WHERE-?“

“I’ll be out in just a sec.”

Y/n hurriedly closed the door, trying to still her heart.

She knew she should be above this, more mature and professional about this whole thing, but she really wasn’t.

There were two boys in her house…at night…IN HER BED?!?

It made sense they had her bed; where else were two people going to sleep? She only had the one couch, and there was no way in hell she could actually see herself in the same bed with one of them and not burst into flames of embarrassment!

She felt like a teenager, hell a giddy tween she never was because she was always the quiet girl at those parties, happy to listen rather than talk when the others inevitably turned to talking about crushes.

…..wait….why was she thinking ‘crushes’ now?

OMG, HOW WAS SHE SUPPOSE TO GO OUT THERE NOW?!? IN HER PYJAMSES?!?

Giggling like an idiot, Y/n heard a gentle knock on her bathroom door.

“Y-yes!” she squeaked.

“YOU OKAY Y/N?”

“Yes!”

“…ONLY YOU’VE BEEN IN THERE FOR A LONG TIME, GIGGLING.”

“I-I’ll be right out!”

“OKAY! I-I’LL BE RIGHT HERE…WELL, NOT HERE, I’LL GO BACK AND SIT NEXT TO SANS.”

“smooth.” commentated Sans.

Washing her face hurriedly, stripping and putting on her baggy pants and top, Y/n exited the bathroom, but was surprised to see Sans back in his hoodie and slippers.

“If you’re cold Sans, I can always turn up the thermostat.” She said, moving towards it.

But Sans shook his head, standing, “nah, it’s okay kid. i think i rather head home now.”

Papyrus and Y/n both gasped.

“BROTHER! THAT’S AWFULLY RUDE-!”

“If I did something wrong, then I’m-!”

He held up his hand, waiting for them to settle down.

When they did, he smiled gently at her, “Y/n, you’ve done nothing wrong. nothing at all.” He walked towards her, his hand open, “i actually had fun tonight kid, and i look forward to coming back or having you over, if you get the time.”

“Then why are you leaving?” she asked, shaking his hand.

His smile fell slightly, “i, er, i actually have a bit of trouble sleeping.” He shrugged, letting go of her hand, “not much point of me staying here and keeping everyone else awake.”

“I THOUGHT YOU WERE OVER YOUR SLEEPING…ISSUES, SANS.” Papyrus said softly, coming to stand by his brother's side.

“sorry paps.”

Papyrus hugged him.

Y/n rubbed the back of her neck, awkwardly, “I’m really sorry to hear that Sans. I-I used to have trouble sleeping as well, so I guess I understand.” She looked over at him, “Is there anything I can get you? Perhaps call a cab?”

He seemed to think that over, before nodding, his smile grateful. “yeah, i’d actually appreciate that.”

Nodding, Y/n quickly called the number, before throwing on a pair of shoes.

In the dark, lighten up by lights from her apartment and the streetlights outside, the three walked down the spiral staircase, out of the store and down the deserted shopping street, the bright moon gleaming next to countless stars. It was these stars Sans watched, walking side by side his brother, who carried his bag for him.

At the end of the street, a cab was waiting for them, the driver none too pleased to see the monsters.

The three ignored him, instead, turning to each other and baying each other goodnight. Papyrus embraced his brother fondly, lowering himself to Sans height before murmuring something about taking care of himself and a pet rock.

When she went to shake his hand, however, Sans pulled her into a hug.

“mate means lover and partner to monsters kid.” He whispered into her ear.

“Wh-what?” she gapped.

Grinning mischievously, Sans let Y/n go and stepped into the cab, winking at her as the cab did a U-turn and disappeared down the street.

Why did he say that?!

What was that suppose to mean?!?

 

Next Chapter is called: I don’t know what to say

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh god, all my chapters are getting longer!  
> SOMEONE STOP ME!
> 
> ....what's that? You're all happy to have longer chapters? You don't mind if I easily go over 10,000 words each time?
> 
> Traitors!


	13. I don’t know what to say

Y/n walked with Papyrus back up the quiet street, back to her home and shop in relative silence…both in their pyjamas. For Papyrus, he was concerned about his brother’s health, his conflicting feelings of wanting to make sure he was okay yet very much wanting to be here, with Y/n. Feelings of guilt and conflicting wants kept him subdued, where otherwise he would have probably carried Y/n on his back, running back to her house in glee that he was spending all this time alone with her.

For Y/n, Sans’s final words to her keep repeating in her head.

_“mate means lover and partner to monsters, kid.”_

Why had he said that?

Where had that come from?!

She was trying to think of everything she had said earlier on that might have given him reason to pull that little tidbit from nowhere! Had she accidentally called him or Papyrus mate?

…no?

At least, she couldn’t remember saying it.

 _‘Is that why Papyrus is so quiet?’_ she thought, looking over at him, ‘ _Did I make him feel awkward by accidentally saying it?’_

“Papyrus, did I call either you or Sans ‘mate’ by accident?”

Papyrus tripped over his feet, stumbling forward.

He quickly turned to look at her, “N-NO! WHY WOULD YOU SAY SOMETHING LIKE THAT BY ACCIDENT?!”

“Slip of the tongue?” she shrugged.

“SLIP OF THE TONGUE.” he whispered to himself, in disbelief. He turned and kept walking, laughing quietly to himself, “SLIP OF THE - , OH I SWEAR, HUMANS CAN BE SO STRANGE AT TIMES!”

She jogged quickly to match his stride, “I’m guessing, by your reaction then, it means more than friends?”

He stopped and gaped at her as she unlocked her store’s door and let him in, “MORE THAN- OF COURSE IT MEANS MORE THAN FRIENDS! IT’S JUST ABOUT THE CLOSEST TWO PEOPLE CAN GET! HUMAN,” He waited for her to lock the door behind herself, waving his arms around in mild distress, “WHY ARE WE TALKING ABOUT THIS NOW?!”

“I-I” She hadn’t been expecting this reaction from Papyrus over a simple misunderstanding. Hoping to avoid looking at his baffled face, she hurried upstairs, talking to him over her shoulder as he slowly followed her up, “Look, Sans said something to me that made me think I said it by accident. So, if that’s not the case and now I know it means more to monsters, I’ll just make sure not to say it again. It’s not a big deal Papyrus.”

“Y-YOU DIDN’T REALISE?”

Y/n watched Papyrus climb up the last stair and walk on her apartment floor, still looking confused.

She busied herself by straightening her pillow and blanket on the couch, “I didn’t mean any harm Papyrus. You have to understand; to humans, it’s just a word that people use to describe someone as a friend.” She looked up to see him watching her carefully, “It doesn’t mean that they’re a couple or anything.”

He made his way slowly towards her, “WHAT DO HUMANS CALL IT THEN? W-WHAT DO HUMANS CALL IT WHEN PEOPLE FALL IN LOVE AND START BEING TOGETHER?”

She sat down, thinking, “Um, I think we say that they’re dating. Girlfriend and boyfriend is generally the right term, although I guess partners works as well.”

Papyrus moved sit next to her on the couch, still looking confused.

She patted his back, awkwardly, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to make this awkward or anything. Sans just made me realise that I didn’t understand that that word has a lot more meaning to monsters than humans, and I thought I might have said it by accident. So, with that sorted, we can go to bed and pretended this didn’t happen, yeah?”

Papyrus took a deep breath, before smiling up at her, “OKAY! THANK YOU Y/N!”

She smiled back, waiting for him to stand up and go to her bed so she could tuck herself to sleep. It was kind of late already.

And she was still waiting.

…

..

.

Papyrus cleared his throat, looking away, awkwardly “WELL, THIS IS GETTING UNCOMFORTABLE AGAIN.”

She couldn’t agree more, but she smiled politely, “Was there anything you need Papyrus?”

“I ONLY NEED YOU TO MOVE SO I CAN GO TO BED ALREADY.” He replied, not looking at her.

She looked around her, “Why?” she gestured to her bed, “You’re sleeping over there, remember?”

He gasped at her, “I-I NEVER AGREED TO THAT!”

“It’s where you and Sans were going to sleep. I told you, remember?”

He started sweating, “Y-YEAH, WELL, SANS ISN’T HERE ANY LONGER, SO YOU CAN GO BACK TO YOUR BED…THE  ONE YOU SLEEP IN EVERY NIGHT.”

She looked him up and down, quickly comparing his height to the length of her couch, “Papyrus, I don’t know how to tell you this, but there’s no way you’re going to fit on this thing; you’re just too tall. It’s one of the reasons I thought it’d make more sense for you to have my bed for the night.”

She tried keeping logical about this, even as her face heated up again. If Papyrus slept here, he’d have a terrible sleep and would probably have to cram his top half on the couch while the rest on him was left to dangle over the armrest. She wouldn’t have that problem, so it just made sense he had her bed and WHY WAS THIS SO WEIRD?!?

Yet Papyrus seemed insistent that she’d get her bed, “I’M MAKE DO FOR TONIGHT, YOU DON’T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT ME Y/N!”

She folded her arms, “You expect me to get a good sleep while I leave you with a crumby couch that you bearly fit on? That’ not going to happen Papyrus. I insist you have my bed.”

Papyrus folded his arms as well, “AND I INSIST THAT YOU HAVE IT! IT’S IMPOLITE TO TAKE A LADY’S BED AND MAKE HER SLEEP ELSEWHERE.”

She snorted, “What are you, some sort of knight of chivalry?”

He eyed her, “NO, I JUST HAPPEN TO HAVE MANNERS, THAT’S ALL.”

She smile fell, “Oh.” She tightened her arms, “Well, it’s impolite for the host to not cater for all their guest's needs. You did that for me, remember? Now it’s my turn.”

He spluttered, “W-WELL, YEAH, BUT THIS IS DIFFERENT!”

“How?”

There was a pause.

“BECAUSE I SAID THERE IS?”

Y/n chuckled, turning to sit cross-legged on the couch so she could watch him, her arms still crossed, “Well, I guess we’ll both have to sit here until ONE of us becomes less stubborn about this and accept the host’s generous offer.”

Papyrus sat back more firmly on the couch, his arms still firmly folded as he looked over at her, “OR UNTIL THE HOST ACCEPTS THAT THEIR GUEST IS GOING TO STAY UP ALL NIGHT TILL THE HOST CHANGE THEIR MIND.”

They stared at each other, with Y/n smiling softly at Papyrus as his brow keep frowning with every yawn she made.

*RING-RING*

The sound of a mobile phone going off startled both of them as they both flinched violently. Y/n looked over at Papyrus’s bag, watching as he stood up and quickly moved towards it, searching for the source of the noise.

Finding his mobile phone, Papyrus’s eye lit up as he read the name and answered his phone, “SANS! HOW ARE YOU?! DID YOU MAKE IT HOME OKAY?!”

Y/n watched as Papyrus paced behind her couch, unsure if she should stay here or go to the kitchen. It wasn’t like she still wouldn't still hear him in there…maybe she wouldn’t hear him from downstairs? Problem with that was Papyrus was right in front of the stairs. Maybe she should try and get his attention?

Only problem with that was her shy attempts to get his attention wasn’t working and he seemed to have forgotten she was here as he kept talking to Sans.

“…YEAH, WE’RE FINE…OH, WELL, SHE’S INSISTING THAT I HAVE HER BED, BUT I’M STANDING FIRM! IT’S NOT POLITE TO-… I CAN’T SANS!...I JUST CAN’T!... WHAT ELSE? UM, WE, ER, W-WE WERE TALKING ABOUT HOW HUMANS DON’T UNDERSTAND HOW TO USE THE WORD ‘MATE’ IN ITS PROPER CONTEXT, AND-…WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU KNEW THAT?! SINCE WHEN?!...OH…WHAT AM I FEELING? WELL, RELIEVED I DON’T HAVE TO EXPLAIN IT, I GUESS, ALTHOUGH MOSTLY CONFUSED ABOUT WHY YOU BROUGHT IT UP AS YOU LEFT-…MY FEELINGS?!” His eyes finally met hers, so she tried miming going past him, but he only looked at her, thoroughly confused and a bit...apprehensive?

Before Y/n had time to analyse him further, he quickly turned his back to her, “I-I CAN’T SANS!...BECAUSE I STILL DON’T KNOW!... TALK WITH HER?! WHY?!......... WHAT DO YOU MEAN THAT’S THE REASON YOU LEFT?!...ER.” he looked over his shoulder at her before looking away again, “I, UM, YES, I THINK SHE HEARD THAT……WHY?...OH, OKAY THEN.” He turned to face her, “SANS SAYS TO TELL YOU THAT HE LEFT BECAUSE HE THOUGHT WE COULD DO WITH THE PRIVACY AND HE’S SORRY FOR LYING ABOUT THAT.”

“…That’s fine, I guess, but privacy for what?” she asked, leaning over the back of her couch by this point, no longer attempting to leave. It was sort of too late to be worrying about that.

“I DON’T KNOW! HMMM?” he turned his attention back to his phone as Sans contuined to talk, “….WHY WOULD I ASK ABOUT THAT?...NO, I REMEMBER WHAT YOU AND PETE SAID, BUT I STILL THINK-…I GUESS IT’S A POSSIBILITY…FINE, I’LL ASK! BUT I DON’T SEE WHAT THIS CHANGES…OKAY, I PROMISE I WILL, OKAY?!...YOU CAN GET AWFULLY SMUG SOMETIMES, YOU KNOW THAT?…*GASP!* I’M NEVER LIKE THAT!...OKAY, THAT ONE TIME…AND THAT TIME…OKAY, I GET IT! I’M GOING TO HANG UP NOW!...GOODNIGHT SANS. AND, BROTHER?...LOOK AFTER YOURSELF, OKAY?......YOU TOO SANS, BUT I SWEAR IF I COME HOME AND YOU’VE SPILLED KETCHUP ALL OVER THE COUCH AGAIN, LOVE WON’T SAVE YOU FROM ME STICKING YOU IN THE WASHING MACHINE WITH THE COUCH COVERS…NIGHT SANS.”

Papyrus hung up his phone, smiling softly at the screen for a moment.

“It’s good to hear he got home safely.”Y/n said, genuinely happy that there hadn’t been any drama on that front.

“YES IT IS!” proclaimed Papyrus happily, turning and stooping down to put away his phone.

Y/n smiled softly, still resting her arms on the couch's backrest, “So, what did Sans want you to ask me about?”

Papyrus flinched violently, his back becoming ridged as he faced away from her.

“Everything okay?” she asked, concerned.

He stood up slowly, before making his way back over to sit next to her, not quite meeting her eye.

“You okay Papyrus?” she asked, moving to see his face.

When he didn’t respond, her eyes quickly fell into her lap, “Look, you don’t have to ask if you don’t want to. I’ll just tell Sans you did and-“

“WHAT’S YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH MATT?” he asked, still not meeting her eye.

“Matt?” She looked at him, confused, “What’s he got to do with anything?”

Papyrus shrugged, “SANS WANTED ME TO ASK YOU ABOUT HIM.”

“Oh.” Not seeing the point to this enquiry, she continued anyway, “Well, I’ve known Matt for a while now, but it wasn’t till I helped cheer him up one day that we really became friends. After that, I just couldn’t seem to get rid of him.” She shrugged, smiling softly, “He helps keeps me in touch with the outside world and pushing me out of my comfort zone, so he’s not so bad when you get to know him.”

Papyrus’s hands clenched in his lap, “A-ARE YOU MATES?” he closed his eyes, “NO, ARE YOU DATING? IS HE YOUR PARTNER?”

She gasped, “Wh-what?! No! Whatever gave you that idea?!”

Papyrus looked at her, confused, “I-I CALLED HIM YOUR MATE AND YOU DIDN’T DISAGREE?”

“When?!”

“IN MY TEXT TO YOU? ON THE DAY I FIRST CAME HERE?”

Gasping again, Y/n quickly hurried over to her bed, throwing herself across the sheets as she reached for her phone and scrolled through her old messages to Papyrus.

“Holy Shi-sheets! I didn’t even notice!” she looked up as Papyrus came to sit quietly next to her, “Is that why people keep asking about me and Matt?”

Papyrus nodded.

Finally, something that had been bugging her had finally gotten resolved, and she couldn’t help but laugh out in relief, “Oh this explains quite a bit!” she smiled over at a confused Papyrus, “No, Matt and I are just good friends. He’s never asked. We just don’t have that type of relationship.” She patted Papyrus's knee through his onesies, “I told you, Matt and I have a different type of friendship than what we have.”

“I-I THOUGHT YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FRIENDS AND MATES.” Papyrus mumbled.

She yawned, feeling more tired all of a sudden, “Nah. I mean, I was, but only in the context I didn’t know that monsters have a different understanding of what that word means. Matt just a friend.” She yawned again as she reached over to plug her phone back in, missing Papyrus’s sudden peaked interest in her actions, “I’m sorry about the misunderstanding, but now that I know, I’ll be sure to be more aware of it, I promise.”

As she moved to stand, Papyrus grabbed her hand, the sudden sensation on his bare hand holding her wrist actually made her flinch.

She turned to look at him as he stared at his feet, “P-Papyrus?”

He stood up swiftly, still holding her wrist as he looked down at her, his stare intense and purposeful. Before she could ask him what was wrong, he had let her hand go and then quickly swept her off her feet, cradling her in his arms.

She gasped, “Pap-?!”

He dropped her back to her bed.

Before she could push herself up, Papyrus had trapped her to the bed, his arms supporting his weight on either side of her head, staring down at her as his eyes glowed softly in the near dark.

“YOU’RE STAYING AND SLEEPING HERE, UNDERSTAND?”

She stared back, shocked to see this side of him.

He moved his head closer, his breath hitting her lips as he slowly nodded his head, “YES PAPYRUS, THE INCREDIBLY HANDSOME AND AMAZING SKELETON?”

She merely nodded slowly, but he still beamed as he pushed himself away from her.

“GREAT! NOW THAT I’VE CLEARED THAT MISUNDERSTANDING, I THINK I’LL HEAD FOR THE COUCH FOR SOME WELL DESERVED- HURK!“

Y/n had pushed herself up and grabbed the back of his onesie, surprising both of them with just how easily she pulled and tossed him to the other side of her bed. Before he could move, she had rolled on top of him and was sitting on his pelvic bones, staring him down.

“Y-Y/N!” Papyrus cried out in absolute shock.

She grinned down at him, playfully,  “What, you can pin me to the bed but I can’t do that to you?” she grinned wider as she leaned in closer to him, “Now, you’re going to sleep in this bed and get a proper sleep instead, understand?”

He looked away, blushing.

“Yes incredible smart and beautiful Y/n” she continued to grin at him, slowly nodding her head like he had done to her.

Papyrus turned to face her, slowly pushing himself up into a sitting position, “I DON’T THINK SO, INCREDIBLY SMART AND BEAUTIFUL Y/N.”

Now it was Y/n’s turn to look away and blush

She folded her arms as she stared determinedly at the nearby wall, “We-we’re never going to agree who gets the bed, are we?”

Papyrus folded his arms too, staring at the same wall through his own blush, “N-NO! UNLESS THAT SOMEONE IS YOU!”

Y/n sighed, dropping her arms, “H-How about we share it?”

He gapped at her, his face exploding further in glowing blush, “SH-SHARE?! AS IN WE’RE BOTH IN THE SAME BED?!?”

She quickly looked away, her own blush exploding across her cheeks, “W-we’re not going to agree otherwise! Look, the bed’s plenty big enough; if you stay on your side and I stay on mine, it shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

_‘Don’t be weird about this, Y/n! You’re just sleeping in the same bed, so don’t be a child about this! Don’t make this weird for him.’_

… then why are you still sitting on his hips like some sort of creep?

Gasping, she quickly scooted off him and sat on her side of the bed, her back to him, “S-sorry about s-sitting on you.”

When he didn’t respond, she made to stand, “Just take the bed-“ but stopped when she felt a hand on her shoulder, stopping her.

She looked over her shoulder to see Papyrus looking at her, still blushing, “AR-ARE YOU REALLY OKAY WITH ME SLEEPING I-IN YOUR BED?”

She nodded.

Papyrus swallowed loudly, “AN-AND YOU’RE NOT GOING TO LET ME SLEEP ON THE COUCH?”

“You won’t sleep properly Papyrus. You’re going to hurt yourself if you try.” She sighed.

The hand on her shoulder started shaking.

Concerned, she looked behind her to see that Papyrus had broken into a light sweat.

“Everything okay Papyrus?” she gestured to the couch, “I’m still up for sleeping on the couch if you want your own space?”

“NO!” Papyrus looked quickly away, “Y-YOU NEED A PROPER SLEEP AS WELL Y/N.”

“Okay then.” She stood up and turned off the main lights, leaving her bedside light on as she tried to ignore her sudden increased heart rate. By the time she turned off the last light and turned back to her bed, she saw Papyrus already under the covers, facing the wall.

Sighing, knowing that this was probably going to be a long night, Y/n crawled under her side’s sheets, facing the wall closest to her as she reached over and switched off the bedside light, plunging them both into near darkness.

Noticing the glow of what she knew was Papyrus’s still present blush, she teased him as she rolled over to face him, “Hey Papyrus, do you mind if you switch off the light near you?”

“…THERE ISN’T A LIGHT NEAR ME THOUGH.”

“Oh, must be someone blushing then.”

She grinned when she watched Papyrus throw the blankets over his head, muffling his indigent response of, “I AM NOT BLUSHING!”

Y/n giggled, “Okay then, just making sure.”

He grumbled, then fell back into silence.

Eventually, after a long stretch of silence, he said in surprise, “Y-YOU’RE REALLY WARM?”

She pulled her legs closer to her side, “S-sorry about that.”

“NO!” He quickly blurted out, “I-I LIKE IT. IT’S O-ODDLY SOOTHING.”

Now it was her turn to blush, throwing the sheets over her head before she remembered that Papyrus had already beaten her to it. Following the light source create by his still blushing face, her eyes were quickly drawn to his surprised expression.

“…UM…HELLO? I’M STILL NOT BLUSHING BY THE WAY!”

“Neither am I!” she exclaimed, poking her head above the covers and turning over to face the wall.

 _‘What the hell is wrong with me?!’_ she thought in distressed, now wide awake. _‘Why am I reacting like this?!’_

There was a long moment of silence, with just enough time for Y/n to grow hopeful that Papyrus had fallen asleep and she could move quietly to the couch and sleep without the fear of waking up to find she was spooning Papyrus in his sleep.

She did not what him discovering she was a cuddler in her sleep like that!

Papyrus voice eventually came out quietly, still muffled from under the blankets, “DO YOU EVER FEEL LIKE YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU’RE FEELING?”

_‘What, like right now?!’_

Y/n giggled hysterically, “N-no! Never!”

There was a moment of awkward silence.

…

..

.

“Yeah,” she admitted with a heavy sigh, “I’ve been getting that feeling a lot recently, actually.”

She felt the bed shift next to her as Papyrus sat up, looking over at her, “WHAT DO YOU DO TO FIX IT?”

She sat up as well, sighing heavily, “I don’t know, I just keep ploughing along. You know, get through days as they come? Sometimes it helps if I just speak my thoughts aloud though."

“OH”

There was another stretch of silence.

“May-maybe it would help if you described it?” she asked, gesturing to him, “What does it feel like?”

His hands absent-mindedly went to his chest, “IT’S A BIG FEELING AND IT KEEPS CHANGING. IT’S LIKE IT KEEPS SHAKING ALL MY EMOTIONS AROUND, SO I DON’T KNOW WHAT’S COMING NEXT!”

“That sounds…confusing.” And she had no clue what might be causing him that.

“IT IS!”

There was more silence.

“WHAT ABOUT YOU?” he asked her softly.

“Me?” she looked over to see him looking intently at her. Quickly, she looked away and pulled her knees up to her chest, “…well, it’s a very confusing feeling, whatever it is. I get strong emotions too, but what I mostly get is conflicting feelings. Like, I’ll be super happy and super anxious at the same time.”

“REALLY?! THAT SOUNDS JUST AS CONFUSING!”

She nodded, her eyes focused on the window opposite of her, the window that looked down at the quiet street below with the street lights that provided some light for her to see.

“HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN FEELING LIKE THIS?” he asked, shifting his legs so that he sat crossed legged on her bed, facing her.

“Um…” she thought about it, “for a while, I guess? Hard to say, honestly, it’s just sort of been building up recently.” She looked at him, “You?”

He raised a hand to his chain and closed his eyes tight in concentration, “…I’VE HAD THIS FEELING FOR A WHILE TOO…PROBABLY SOMETIMES AFTER I MEET YOU, IF I HAD TO PUT A TIME TO IT.”

She smiled softly at him, “Strange how these things work out, isn’t it?”

“IT IS?”

She nodded, “I was just thinking how much you’ve completely changed my life earlier. I mean, here I am, having a sleepover with the greatest friend I have ever had, right after working on a monster- humans fusion cooking book with him.” She smiled fondly as she rested her head on arm, resting on her knee, looking out the window. “And to think, I was scared to meet up again with you.”

“SCARED?”

His sad tone immediately drew her attention back to him. “Didn’t I explain this to you already? I’m sure I did.” she waited for him to respond, but he only shook his head, “I think it was close to Giftmas, when I explained that I saw you as this super bold and confident person that I, the shy bookworm, had no business being friends with.” She looked away, “I still can’t believe that you actually consider me a friend.”

She felt her chin being lifted to face him, watched as he moved both hands to hold her face as he placed his forehead to hers and corrected her, “BEST FRIENDS, REMEMBER?”

She smiled softly, the strange feeling flaring up again, “Best friends” she agreed softly.

Still smiling, he let her go, settling back into his sitting position

They fell into a comfortable silence this time, each watching the street light flickering somewhere outside, both noting that outside was naturally brighter now.

“OH!” Papyrus cried out as a sudden realisation hit him and he turned to face her, “IS THAT YOU WERE DOING IN THE PARK WHEN I FIRST MET YOU? SPEAKING YOUR THOUGHTS ALOUD?”

“Yep.” She grinned, looking over at him, “And I bet you thought I was crazy, yeah?”

“ACTUALLY, I JUST THOUGHT YOU WERE TALKING TO SOMEONE ON YOUR PHONE OR SOMETHING…WELL, THAT’S NOT TRUE ON THE SECOND TIME I SAW YOU.” when he saw her cock an eyebrow at him, he continued, “I THOUGHT YOU HAD FORGOTTEN WHAT I LOOKED LIKE AND HAD MISTAKEN ME FOR A TRASH CAN. I HAVE TO SAY, I WAS VERY HURT BY THAT!”

Y/n chuckled, “Who could forget the tall skeleton wearing a bright red scarf, who liked lifting me at every chance he seemed to get? You’re many thing Papyrus, but forgettable will never be one of them.”

He beamed, “GOOD!”

There was silence as each privately reflected.

“S-SO TALKING REALLY HELPS?” he asked, his voice uncharacteristically small.

Y/n hummed, “It works for me. Give it a try when you feel the mood hit you.”

She didn’t expect him to talk in front of her, so she was a little lost when he began talking right next to her. “I-I DON’T KNOW HOW I FEEL ANY MORE. JUST WHEN I THINK I UNDERSTAND, IT ALL CHANGES AGAIN AND IT SEEMS TO ALWAYS HAPPEN WHEN YOU’RE AROUND Y/N.”

“Me?” she looked over at him, confused.

He nodded, still staring out the window, “I THINK I GOT JEALOUS AT THE IDEA OF MATT BEING YOUR MATE, BUT THEN I GOT SAD THAT I DIDN’T BOTHER TO ASK SOONER.” He looked over to see her staring at him, “NOW I THINK I’M JUST SAD THAT I KNOW SO LITTLE ABOUT YOU.”

“Being a good friend doesn’t mean memorising a bunch stuff about me Papyrus.” She gestured to him, “I mean, I’m pretty sure there’s tone of things about you that I don’t know. For example, I just learned I can do magic and that monster food can convey feelings and give me energy.”

“DIDN’T YOU REALISE THAT AFTER YOU HAD MY TEA FOR THE FIRST TIME?”

She looked at him, “What?”

Papyrus posed, “I TOLD YOU; I MADE YOU THE PERFECT BLEND OF TEA.” He looked at her, matching her confusion, “‘PERFECT PAPYRUS’? THE PERFECT TEA I’VE BEEN SERVING, JUST FOR YOU?”

Her stomach dropped, “You-you’ve been serving me magically infused tea?”

He beamed, “I SAW HOW MUCH YOU LIKED TEA AND HOW TIRED YOU WERE AFTER THE MORNINGS, AND I JUST KNEW YOU COULD DO WITH A MAGICAL BOOST! I AM, AFTER ALL, A VERY GENEROUS AND CARING MONSTER, WITH PLENTY OF MAGIC TO SPARE!”

But Y/n was thinking about every time she had tea served by Papyrus, how her mind seemed to automatically go to him...was this a form of subliminal brainwashing?! Had he been trying to influence her into a friendship?!

_‘Is-is this the reason for my confused feelings about Papyrus?!’_

She opened her mouth to confront him, but remembered earlier that night back to what Sans said about monster’s intent being interwoven to their magic, and closed her mouth.

If Papyrus had been trying to influence her, wouldn’t she have felt something like that? Honestly, she was struggling to remember clearly what she had felt drinking the tea, so she disregarded it and considered instead what her opinion about Papyrus was.

… He was many things, but she just couldn’t see him capable of purposely trying to brainwash her. He was too pure, too honest, to ever want to do that to a person.

Honestly, the reasons he gave for why he served her special tea would have basically been her guess as to why he had bothered in the first place. If she had been influenced, one way or another, it wasn’t on purpose.

Still, discovering this…he really came from a different culture than her own, didn’t he?

“I CAN SEE THE SUN AGAIN…” She looked up to see Papyrus looking back outside, the dawn light just breaking as his face was bathed in wonder.

Y/n looked out too, saying slowly and quietly to herself, “Guess we stayed up the whole night.”

He turned and narrowed his eyes at her, “WE WOULD HAVE GOTTEN TO BED SOONER IF YOU HAD JUST ALLOWED ME ON THE COUCH.”

She smiled softly at him, “And who kept us awake with all their questions?”

“HEY, YOU ASKED SOME QUESTIONS TOO!”

“Only because you were already asking them.”

He gasped as a look of despair came over him, “YOU’RE RIGHT! I’VE MADE YOU STAY AWAKE THE WHOLE NIGHT! I’M A HORRIBLE FRIEND!”

She quickly leaned forward to pat his back, “Hey now, I was just joking! Besides,“ she sat back, “I had fun talking to you, and I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling weirdly wide awake.”

He looked at her in confusion, “…YEAH…I-I HAVEN’T FELT AT ALL TIRED SINCE I ARRIVED HERE.”

She stood up, stretching her back with a crack and missed Papyrus flinch and blushing as he hurriedly looked away, “Well, I guess if we’re going to skip sleep, we might as well try and get the book’s outline done for Metatton.” She turned and smiled at him, “Think we can get it done before lunch?”

Papyrus leapt from the bed, posing, “OF COURSE! AND WHEN WE’VE DONE THAT, WE CAN GET STARTED ON YOUR COOKING WITH MAGIC LESSONS SO THAT WE CAN START WRITING UP THAT SECTION FOR HUMANS!” he gasped, running around to grab her hands, “YOU CAN COME BACK OVER TO MY HOUSE FOR THE LESSONS! *GASP* WE CAN HAVE A SECOND SLEEPOVER!”

She smiled gently up at this sweetheart, “I don’t think you’re aware of a thing called, ‘second-wind’, are you?”

He let go of her hands and walked away, waving his hands dismissively, “WHATEVER YOU HUMANS CALL THE SECOND SLEEPOVER, I JUST KNOW IT WILL BE AMAZING! I ALWAYS HAVE THE GREATEST AND BESTEST FUN WHENEVER I’M WITH YOU!” he reached her study table and grabbed all of their drafts and ideas, bringing the whole lot to the coffee table, “BUT FIRST, WE HAVE TO GET THIS DONE!”

“Papyrus,” she said, moving to sit next to him, “I’ll come over for lessons, but I don’t think I’ll have the stamina for another sleepover.”

When his eyes wobbled, she quickly amended, “But how about we make plans for the next sleepover to be at your place?”

Judging by how his eyes sparkled, she assumed he was more than okay with that.

~*~

Later on and after a simple breakfast, as Papyrus packed his things and was getting ready to walk home, already calling their outline of a book "THE GREATEST BOOK EVER!", Y/n moved downstairs to make a discreet call.

She still didn’t know how she felt about monster magic being in food, influencing people, about her being the one to expose that knowledge to the general public. The ramifications…if this wasn’t handled properly… how had a simple book suddenly turned into an ethical and moral dilemma?

She held up her phone to her ear, waiting for the call to connect.

“…Y/n? What are you doing calling me on a Saturday?”

“Hey Felix. Look, I need to talk to Metatton about this book of his.”

 

Next Chapter is called: A cause for Celebration

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the really late delay guys, but I've been super busy with several things happening at once =( My computer died, my Internship started, God of War stole my life and the new Avengers movie took my Saturday.
> 
> On that Internship thing, there is a good chance that I'll miss July's update. 6 weeks of full time, unpaid work while working nights is going to be rough...BUT, once it's done, I'm done with Uni!!  
> IF I miss the update, that happens and it sucks. BUT, after I'm done with Internship, I'll have nothing but free time! No promises, but just know that if I miss the July update, I, personally, will want to make up for it.  
> Anyway, sorry for the late realises =(
> 
> Also...
> 
> And the confusion is officially cleared. They’ve had their open talk, and things should go back to how they were before Matt…right?


	14. A cause for Celebration

“Yes, I knew what I was getting into when I asked you to write this book, Y/n.”

Y/n could only stare, gobsmacked at the robot monster in front of her, Felix working somewhere in the background to open the shop on the week’s first workday. All day Saturday having cooking lessons with Papyrus and all day on Sunday worrying about how everything he had taught her about magic in food could so very easily be perceived as brainwashing,….and Metatton was still okay with this book being published for humans to read??

“Bu-but what about the implications?? The backlash and outrage as people start thinking that monsters have been secretly brainwashing them!?” She pointed to the book’s outline in Metatton’s hand, “You’re basically going to publish a book that proves you can manipulate peoples' emotions with food! Please, tell me you’ve thought about what this is going to do to monster and human relationships?!”

Metatton held our his hands, trying to calm her, “Easy Y/n, this isn’t the first monster cultural shock the general human public has gone through. Surely you can remember what it was like when we monsters first came to the surface?”

“I remember a lot of armed guards and make-shift walls.” She eyed him, “I also remember how tense things were when we learned you guys had magic.”

“Yet things settled down in the end, didn’t they?”

She rubbed her eyes, “Settled is debatable and certainly not the case for most of the world, as you and I both know.” She eyed him again, “But I think a big part of that is that monsters can’t help how they look and are banned from performing magic in public. I like to consider myself pretty opened minded, but even I get surprised every now and then by a monster’s appearance, and I’m exposed to monsters practically every day. I can’t imagine what’s it like for someone who only ever sees monsters on television.”

“And that’s why I’m publishing these books, my dear.” He waved the outline around, “These books are meant to expose those people to monster cultural in small ways, ways these humans can read about on their own terms. I know we can’t win over every heart and mind, but if they don’t at least hear about us from our own words, all they have is other humans, and who knows what they’re saying! My thought is that by using something that both monsters and humans like, we can learn from each other, perhaps bound over shared interests!”

“Look, that’s noble and all,” she looked away, not liking where she needed to take this conversation to next, “but I’m also worried about people using this for nefarious reasons.” She looked seriously at him, “I don’t know how much I believe that every monster is too connected to their magic’s intent to ever be capable of doing something like this, but let me assure you, there are some real scumbag humans out there who are going to read this book as a ‘how-to’ control people. People are going to get hurt and monsters are going to get blamed.”

Metatton was silent for a moment, looking over the outline, before handing the outline back to her.

“Metatton-“

He held up his hand, silencing her.

“We can’t hide who we are, Y/n.” He wheeled closer to her and lifted one of her shaking hands up with his own cold ones, “Sooner or later, someone is going to find out that we monsters have been cooking with magic since the first monster learned how to bake. Someone is going to find out that our food just doesn’t have magic in it, it also has out intent, our emotions, and that we can’t separate our emotions from our magic, Y/n. That’s not how magic works. Eventually, someone is going to connect the feeling they get when they’re eating monster food to the fact that there’s magic in it and they’re going to realise that what they’ve been feeling this whole time hasn’t entirely been just their feelings.”

He looked at their clasped hands, rubbing her’s gently, “I know a lot about human culture and history, perhaps more than any other monster. I know that there’s a lot of things that we monster can do that my fellow monsters take for granted and can’t imagine ever been perceived as wrong or used for possible evil purposes.” He looked up her, a digital smile on his screen, “But I also know humans can and will accept us monsters completely, that we don’t need to hide who or what were are…even if it takes a while.”

“How can you possibly believe that?” she asked, looking up into his monitor, searching for answers, “Human history is literally riffed with injustices and really terrible things done to those who were just different. I don’t know how you can claim to know human culture and history and not be absolutely terrified what humans could unleash on monster kind. Last time the two races fought, monsters got locked away…and that might not happen again is another war breaks out.”

“I know,” he emphasised, squeezing her hands slightly, “because your history proves that you humans can change, that you can do better and that each generation is better than the last. I know, because I see how quickly this city has accepted us monsters with constant exposure.” He lifted her hands to his monitor, imitating a peek on the back of her hand, before lowering them and saying, “And I know that there is hope for us monsters today because a human is so concerned about our well being.”

When she looked away with a slight blush, he continued, “There’s plenty we monster haven’t shared, and I’m not suggesting we share all of our secrets in one go; the point of these books is to ease the process to complete understanding, to make sure that, when the bonds of trust are tested with each new bit of information, friendships and positive relationships have already been cultivated through trust and understanding.”

He let go of her hands, “Change has to start somewhere. Someone has to be the first and to stand up for what’s right.”

“Why did it have to be me?” she mumbled quietly to herself, suddenly understanding and connection to Frodo Baggin's plight.

Metatton laughed, his upbeat and eccentric personality creeping back into his laugh, “I’m very happy with what you’ve shown me with the whole outline, and I want to see you keep working on that human section, if you’re still interested.” He threw his arms open wide, “And I’m more than happy to approve of all the recipes that Papyrus has suggested.”

An idea suddenly occurred to him, because suddenly he was rubbing his hands. If-if Y/n didn’t know any better, she would have sworn that Metatton was up to no good!

Before she could say anything, however, Metatton produced a card from nowhere with a flick of his wrist. “I think this should be celebrated! An outline of my first best-seller on the surface! You, Papyrus, and whoever else you want, must simply come to my absolutely fabulous club and celebrate this whole thing properly! Drinks and food on the house!”

“Don’t you think you’re celebrating a bit early?” she asked, taking the card with more glitter than cardboard.

“Nonsense my dear!” he turned to look at Felix, watching them from the front counter, “Felix? Could you call ahead and book the private tables?”

“Already done.” He replied, looking bored.

Y/n looked up from the card, “wait, what??”

But Metatton was already wheeling himself out, waving goodbye as he went, “Be sure to tell Papyrus he can bring whoever he wants tonight and that it’s free drinks and food! Just tell him the name of the place and he’ll just scream in excitement! Chow lovelies!”

“Wait annnnndd he’s gone.”

She turned and walked over to Felix, in a daze, “Is he always so impulsive??”

“Metatton’s an idealist.” Felix shrugged, looking carefully at her, “I wouldn’t say he doesn’t think things through, but he does tend to except things to go his way all the time.”

“You’re talking about these books, aren’t you?”

He nodded, before looking away, “A part of me gets angry that he’s made this decision by himself, but then, he’s also been putting himself out there and actively participating in building those human relationships, at least, in the business side of things anyway. Heck, I’ll admit that it’s thanks to him we got such a good deal with our gold exchange rate. If anyone can succeed, well it’s either going to be the Queen or our ambassador, but he’s got a good shot of it too.”

“I-I’d have never picked him good with business.” She said, looking back at her store’s door “The face of one, sure, but not actually running it.”

Felix looked back to her, “I-I worry, you know? Like, all the time. All I keep thinking is how this can go all wrong, and I just wish it’ll all work and I don’t have to worry about some monster doing something that a human didn’t like.” He closed his eyes and his ears dropped along with his tail, “I-I don’t want to go back to the Underground.” He said quietly to himself, his body shaking.

Y/n tentatively reached out and placed the book’s outline on the front counter before grabbing his soft paw with both hands, rubbing his fur gently and wishing she could do more.

She-she hadn’t realised it was this bad for monsters. Did they all live, every day, thinking about how all this surface could be taken away from them again? What must it be like to grow up never seeing the sun, only hear about it in stories, and to know it could be taken away again? She may prefer her nights over days and her little place in the world, but even she would have hated having that reality forced upon her.

What must that be liked, interacting with the race that had done that to your race? Was that why monsters were so passive? Not because they were kind, but because they were so afraid what happens if they weren’t?

“I-I’m sorry.” Felix mumbled, pulling his hands away from her after a while.

“Is there anything I can get you? Anything you need?” she asked, softly and more than fully prepared to run to the shops and buy all the milk they had.

But Felix merely flickered his tail in discomfort, “I-I’d like to go outside for a smoke break.” His shoulders sagged further, “I’m not really up to serving customers right now.”

“Please, take all the time you need. If you need to take the day off, you’re more than welcome to.”

“I-I’ll think about it, anyway,” he waved vaguely at her, not quite meeting her eye, “you should call Papyrus as soon as you can.”

“What about you? Would you like to come? I know I’d love to have you there.”

He was checking his pockets for cigarettes and a lighter he eventually managed to find, “S’not really my scene.”

“And you think it’s mine??”

“You can always say no.” He moved out around the front counter, stopping next to her, “Just make sure to call Papyrus so he can go. I know the place; it’s every monster’s dream to get in, let alone get private seats like this.”

“Almost every monster.” She corrected, gently patting his arm.

Felix looked from his arm to her, before blush quickly spread under his fur and he looked hurriedly away, “R-right.”

Ducking his head, he quickly left the shop.

Y/n watched him go, heading off to the street and towards the picnic area that most of the café’s based themselves near.

Sighing, wishing she could have said or done more, Y/n pulled out her phone and made a call.

“Y/n!”

She had long learnt to make sure the phone’s speaker was quite low when talking to Papyrus. Still, it was good to hear him, even if it had just been one day.

“Hey Papyrus. So, I just showed Metatton our book-“

“DID HE LOVE IT?? DID HE CALL IT PERFECT?? WELL, OF COURSE HE DID, I WAS HEAVILY INVOLVED WITH THE PROCESS AND I’M A MASTER CHIEF WHO-“

“If you don’t let me talk, I can’t tell you what he said~” she sang, hoping that would grab his attention.

It appeared to work because he actually managed to stop himself in mid-rant.

Chuckling quietly to herself, she continued, “He loved it and-“

“I KNEW THAT HE WOULD!!! THIS IS THE GREATEST DAY ON MY LIFE!!!”

“…….-and to celebrate, he said to tell you that he’s booked us private seats and is giving us free food and drinks for anyone we invite along to a place called,” she held out the card, trying to see past all the glitter, “MTT’S Fab-Me-lous?”

Papyrus screamed, very much like he had on the day she had first told him about meeting Metatton.

 _‘Next time I see him, I’m just going to ask him about all the screaming at his very name mention.’_ She thought with a smile

“SANS!” Papyrus’s voice called out, sounding like he was yelling to him off to the side, “KEEP YOUR SCHEDULE FREE! YOU’RE GOING DANCING TONIGHT!!”

“Dancing??” she spluttered.

But Papyrus wasn’t listening to her anymore if the sound of rushing wind the material getting brushed against the receiver were any indication.

“AND I’LL HAVE HAVE TO INVITE UNDYNE AND ALPHYS TOO, OF COURSE, AND SEE IF THE KING AND QUEEN WOULD BE INTERESTED IN COMING *GASP!* AND IF THEY ARE, I’LL GET TO SEE THE HUMAN AGAIN!! OF COURSE, THERE’S ALWAYS PETE, MISS MUFFET, THE ENTIRE ROYAL GUARD, THAT ANNOYING DOG…ACTUALLY, FORGET HIM. SANS! WHO ELSE SHOULD I INVITE??”

“No one!!” Y/n cried desperately into the receiver.

“OH Y/N!” Papyrus must have brought the phone back to his skull because she could suddenly hear him clearer, “YOU MAKE SURE TO INVITE ALL YOUR FRIENDS TOO!”

“All of my friends??”

“OF COURSE! SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE BEEN ASKING ME ABOUT YOU AND I WANT TO INTRODUCE YOU TO ALL OF THEM TONIGHT!!”

“All of them?!?” she squeaked.

“OH, THERE’S JUST SO MUCH PLANNING TO GET DONE! I KNOW, YOU ORGANISE YOUR FRIENDS AND I’LL ORGANISE MINE, AND WE’LL MEET IN THE FRONT OF CLUB FAB-ME-LOUS AT 7 PM SHARP TO DANCE, SING AND LAUGH THE NIGHT AWAY, BRINGING OUR TWO FRIEND CIRCLES INTO ONE! DOESN’T THAT SOUND PERFECT?!”

“Ac-actually Papyrus-“

“NO TIME TO CHAT NOW Y/N! I HAVE TO GO PRESS MY FINEST DANCING SUIT, SEE YOU AT 7 PM!”

*CLICK!*

Y/n could only stare at her silent phone, her mind absolutely blank with only an occasional word drifting in the vast emptiness of her mindscape.

 

_~Club~_

_~Dancing~_

_~Papyrus~_

_~All his friends~_

_~Meeting~_

_~Me~_

_~One on one~_

_~Me???~_

_~ALONE!?!?~_

“MATT!!!” she screamed, running for her store's door and only just remembering to flick the door’s lock behind her fleeing feet.

She charged into Coffee Stained Pages, bursting in through the front doors.

She didn't have time to take in polished wood decorum, numberable tables and chairs scattered around the place, the shelves upon shelves of books that both acted as decoration and a light read for the coffee drinks or the frankly insulting book statues that were just artistic statues made out of cobbled book; she was already running for the front counter.

“Where’s Matt??” she asked the bewildered serving barista, her eyes dilating in fear like she had just seen a wild animal.

“Y/n??”

Spinning around to the sound of Matt’s voice, Y/n saw him sitting in a corner table, closing his laptop next to his coffee cup and looking at her perplexed and confused.

“Matt!” hurriedly, she made her way over to him, stumbling a few times as panic and weird placement of chair and table legs kept tripping her, “I-I don’t know what to do?!”

He quickly stood up, and made his way over to her, holding her shoulders in open concern, “What’s happened Y/n?? Tell me!”

“You need to help me get out clubbing tonight!!”

He just stared at her, like it was taking him a moment to process what she said, “…..is that it?”

“What do you mean, ‘is that it?’?? You don’t understand! Metatton invited me and Papyrus to his super fancy club, and Papyrus was WAY too excited! He started talking about dancing, then inviting what sounded like everyone he had ever met! Then he tells me these people want to MEET me! Like, all of them! Then he went on to say I should invite all my ‘friends’, and ‘wouldn’t it be wonderful If we combined our two friend groups?’??, when the word he should have used was ‘acquisition’, because my entire contact list on my phone was smaller than his off-the-top-of-my-mind list, and I’m very much including my dentist and doctor in my numbers!!”

By this point, Matt had successfully guided her over his table, easing her into a chair. By the end of her rant, he turned and called out to the front counter, “Can someone please bring me with something with absolutely no sugar or caffeine in it?”

She grabbed him, starling him as she dragged his face forward, “Help me!”

“I am, Y/n.” he replied, grabbing her hands and easing them off his collar before gently placing them on her lap, “but you first need to calm down-“

“Who can be calm in a time like this??” she tried standing up, but Matt had already placed his hands on her shoulder, keeping her there, leaving her to just waving her arms and hoping she could properly convey just how ‘unfine’ all of this really was, “I can’t dance, I’ve never enjoyed social outing and meeting a whole bunch of strangers, ALONE, who already know what I’m sure is WAY too much information is basically my nightmare!”

Matt continued patting her shoulders, “Breath Y/n. Just take a couple of deep calming.”

Rolling her eyes, she did as he asked, focusing on her twisting hands in front of her and briefly smiling at the barista, who placed a cold cup of water in front of Y/n, who left in an awful hurry.

After a while, Matt moved back to his chair, keenly watching her. “Feeling better?” he asked, still concerned.

Y/n took a final deep breath, feeling a lot calmer. Briefly, she smiled up at Matt, before grabbing the cup of water, staring into it.

“So, let me get this straight,” began Matt, sitting back in his chair, “you’ve been invited out to a club tonight and you don’t want to go?”

She nodded.

“Then don’t go.”

“I-I can’t Matt,” she looked up imploring, “Papyrus was so excited to go; I can’t let him down.”

“Don’t let this guy dictate your wants Y/n.” Matt said, frowning.

She placed her cup on the table, “It’s more than that Matt; this place is the best of the best club for monsters! You should have heard Papyrus scream when I mentioned the name!”

“Huh? What’s it called?” he asked, taking a sip out of his own coffee cup.

“MTT Fab-ME-lous”

“I've heard the name. Yeah, okay, that does make saying no a bit trickier.” He leant forward, “but not impossible Y/n.”

“I-I-I” she looked down to her cup, “I just can’t Matt.”

She just couldn’t bear the thought of letting down Papyrus, not even when she thought about how she WAS going to let him down when he turned up with all his friends and there was the sad human girl, alone and making a fool out of herself and probably embarrassing him.

There was an awkward silence.

“So, you refuse to not go, but you don’t want to go?” Matt asked with a heavy sigh.

She nodded.

“How about I go with you?” he offered, pulling out his phone.

Y/n’s head shot up, “Y-you would??”

_‘I-I won’t have to go alone?? Yes! That would be perfect! Matt thrived in social situations; he could take a lot of the interaction heat off me, and I can just sit back and passively get through the night!’_

He nodded absentmindedly, before looking up and grinning at her, “Me, AND your sister.”

Her heart plummeted, “Vic??”

He nodded with a smirk, before leaning in closer to her, waving his phone, “Here’s the deal Y/n; you say you don’t want to go, but you’re making yourself go. I know what you’re like in social situations and it would probably mean the world to you if you don’t go alone, right? Take someone like me who actually LIKES talking to people as a way of distracting attention from yourself?”

When all she could do was shrug and try not to look he hadn’t just the nail on the head, he continued with a broad smile, “So, seeing as me and your sister are just two of the people who know and care about you, I think it’s about time we meet this Papyrus too, find out who it is you’ve been spending all this time with and make sure you’re really as okay as you claim. After all, we’re friends, and you were told to invite friends, right?”

Looking away from his smug look, Y/n folded her arms and looked back into her cup, thinking hard.

It wasn’t that she didn’t love her older sister or that the two of them didn’t have a great relationship that went beyond being related by blood, it was just her sister had this way about stick her nose into her business, asking questions she REALLY didn’t want to answer and always making her blushing! It also didn’t help the fact that Y/n was always comparing her life to hers, working her dream job, happily married with a beautiful baby girl, Vic had this way of making it all seem so easy. She was cool, calm and collected, and an emotional loving supportive person who would always be there, even if she had to drive over with baby sick down her front.

In short, Vic was exactly what she born to do; be the best big sister.

“Okay fine! I’ll call her.” She mumbled, looking away.

“After the last time a difficult customer kept demanding money and you swore to me you called her to let her know you were fine when you were really hiding in your room?” He looked up, unamused, “Not this time Y/n.”

“But she’s a busy person!”

He waved her off, “I’ll send over a text and let her know what’s happening. If she can’t make it, I’ll come over and tell you, but I promise I’ll still come.” He grinned, “But we both know she’s not missing seeing you go out clubbing.”

~*~

Turns out that she locked her keys in the store, so when she came back, it was to a Felix looking worried that he had been fired in the most extreme way. Y/n spent the entire time it took the locksmith to turn up apologising, swearing that it would never happen again and that he could expect a daily order of that sweet milk he seemed to like on the front counter. Felix had blushed, trying to wave her off and refusing to go home and when she had insisted he take the day off to make up for her screw up, saying that she ‘seemed stressed out by something’, for why is he insisted staying.

So Y/n spent the rest of the workday, tidying her books and answer customers questions with constant ‘thank you’s aimed at Felix, who soon gave up trying to tell her she didn’t need to thank him every time he rung up a purchase. He also flat out refused to go to the clubbing tonight, ignoring whatever bribes she began offering just to have another body between her, her sister and all of Papyrus’s friends. Vic herself actually did call her, but it was just to confirm what Matt had texted her about tonight and going clubbing with a group of strangers, her oath that she would have many, many more questions for the sister who thought she could hide this from her, especially seeing as they had seen each other at Christmas and Y/n had answered, ‘Nothing’ when she had asked what was new in her life.

By the end of the day, both Y/n and Felix were rather awkward around each other, with Felix hurrying to say goodbye and leave before she could yet again ask him about his plans tonight. Thus resigned, and looking up to the clock know that Matt and Vic would soon be here and the nightmare could start, Y/n had just enough time to contemplate locking her door and hiding upstairs when her front door swung open wide with the doorbell’s jingling.

“Y/n!”

The sound of high heels clicking across her wooden floor was all the warning she was got before she was hugged from behind, someone smelling nice nuzzling her neck with happy hums.

“Hello Victoria.” Y/n replied, lifelessly.

Vic backed up, and proceeded to give her a dead arm.

“Ow!” Y/n cried, rubbing her arm to ease the pain as she turned around to glare at her sister, “what ch’ya do that for??”

Vic crossed her arms, glaring back, “New friends, new business partner and freaking out about going out clubbing and I’m not the first person you call?? What the hell Y/n? Why did I have to learn about all this for the first time from a vague text from Matt??”

Y/n looked pass her gorgeous sister in a stunning dress that highlighted just how perfect she was and how motherhood had only enhanced her already frankly flawless features to glare at Matt in a sharp -open jacket suit without a tie, “You even told her about Metatton?? Why Matt??”

“‘Told’, really doesn’t convey the soul-crushing look that went with that grilling session.” Matt sighed, looking sheepishly at the pair of sisters glaring at him, “I just want to point out quickly that I am not family, I have nothing to do with this,” he pointed at Y/n, “and that this is all Y/n’s fault.”

“You backstabbing-!”

Vic laughed, tightly, “Oh, I’m sure I’ll get to the bottom of who’s fault this all is by the end of the night, but first,-“ she pointed to the stairs, meeting Y/n’s eyes, “you’re going to come upstairs with me and get change.”

“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” She asked indigent, looking down at herself.

Vic rubbed her eyes, “Loose fitting jeans and a baggy shirt is not ‘clubbing’ clothing, Y/n.”

“Well, I don’t have any ‘clubbing’ clothing.” Y/n eyed the dress her sister was wearing, “And I certainly don’t have anything like that in my wardrobe.”

Vic’s eyes softened, “It doesn’t have to be a dress Y/n, just something nice, something to show off just how pretty you are.”

Y/n looked away, scoffing, “yeah right.

Without another word, Vic took her hand and dragged her to the hidden stairway. After she bent down and unlocked the mechanisms, she took one look at the stairs, before kicking off her heels and leaving them at the base of the stairs.

“Keep yourself entertained Matt, we shouldn’t be long.” She said, turning to look at him.

But Matt was already sitting down, reading a comic book. After Vic finished talking, he waved her off as he continued to read, “Better her than me.” He grinned.

Vic snickered as Y/n pouted, letting herself get dragged upstairs.

Vic didn’t get very far into her flat before she dropped Y/n's hand and she just stood in the middle of her apartment, looking at her feet.

“Is-is it because I push too hard? Do I but in too often and that’s why you didn’t tell me any of this? Any of the new changes in your life?”

“N-no.” Y/n replied, looking away and suddenly feeling guilty.

Vic looked over her shoulder at her, her smile tight as she nodded, “O-okay then, I’ll just back off and-“

Y/n quickly ran up and hugged her sister’s back, “Please stop! It’s not like that, okay?”

Vic turned around and returned the hug, keeping her arms around Y/n long after she felt awkward hugging someone this long and dropped her arms. “Okay, then what happened? What did I do?”

“Just because you like posting pictures of your kid every nanosecond doesn’t mean the rest of us feel as comfortable sharing.” Y/n mumbled, looking away as the hug continued.

Vic let her arms drop and took a step back. “I-I know that,” she looked away sheepishly, “I guess I always thought I was the exception to that rule.”

“You are, to an extent.” When her sister indicated she should continue, Y/n sighed, “Look, you would not believe how quickly things changed, how fast this as all happened! I’m living it, and even I don’t believe all that’s happened!”

Vic chuckled gently, moving to her wardrobe and opening it, “So it’s a time issue then?”

“Try a 'thought process' issue.” Y/n sat down, watching her sister browse her things, “I-I don’t even know how to explain it.”

“Try from the beginning.” Vic suggested, pulling out a few items of clothing and placing them next to Y/n.

Y/n looked through the pile next to her, splitting it into a no and maybe pile as she spoke, “Well, I guess that starts with meeting Papyrus.”

“The skeleton monster?” Vic asked, head deep in the wardrobe.

“Yeah.”

“Is he a skeleton or a monster that looks like a skeleton?”

Y/n shrugged, “What’s the difference?”

“Oh,” Vic stood up, looking over a couple shirts in her arms, “I guess it’s the difference between an ex-human and just a monster?” she said, turning around with a shrug after putting the shirts into the pile next to Y/n.

“Oh, well, I’ve never asked. I’m guessing he’s a monster that happens to look like a skeleton, but…you know what, when you meet him, tell me if that’s the first question you want to ask him.”

“What else might I ask him?” Vic said, turning around to look at her in interest.

“Try, ‘where does you’re boundless energy come from?” Y/n flopped onto her bed, landing in her ‘no’ pile, “Papyrus is full on, and every monster I’ve met since then has basically been a whirlwind of emotions and actions!”

“Wow,” grinned Vic, turning back to the wardrobe, “sounds like things have been quite hectic for you.”

Y/n threw her arms up into the air, “That’s what I’ve been trying to explain!”

Vic chuckled quietly to herself, before throwing the last few things onto the pile, looking down at Y/n as she pushed herself up to quickly sort them out, “So tell me, what’s he like?”

“I just told you; energetic and full on.” Y/n replied, done with the sorting.

Vic picked up the pile of rejected clothes and put them away, smiling, “Noooope, try adding a couple more adjectives in there.”

“Um,” Y/n looked away, thinking, “Well, I guess he’s sweet, considerate, passionate, loving, really kind, really supportive.” She chuckled as she smiled, “a bit of a goofball, and well, I guess you could say he is a great guy in general.”

Y/n looked back around to see her sister staring at her with shimmering eyes, both hands clasped over her mouth.

“What?” asked Y/n, baffled.

Vic merely shook her head, her eyes moving firmly to the pile of clothes. Quickly, she picked up her nicest pair of black slacks and one of her tops that had a lot of sequences and really hugged her upper body, a lot lower cut than she was used to.

“How did that make it into the pile?” Y/n muttered, swearing she had put that in the no pile.

Vic merely shrugged and ignored Y/n’s suspicious glares, shoving the clothes into her arms, “Now, go get changed, and either let me style your hair or leave it out….and if you really love me, let me put a dash of make-up on you.”

“What about a jacket?” she asked, eyeing the top's sleeves and wishing it covered more of her arms.

“You won’t need it.”

“But what if I get cold?”

Vic’s eyes flashed, “Then I want to see you dancing to warm yourself up, Y/n.”

Rolling her eyes, Y/n vowed to grab a thin throw over or something, and hide it in her bag.

No way was she letting anyone see her in this!

~*~

While Y/n changed in the bathroom, Vic had more questions after that, but she mostly asked about the business deal and what they were expecting at the club tonight. Y/n’s answers about going because Papyrus was really looking forward to it surprised Vic, but she didn’t ask many more questions after that. No, for some reason, she was giggling and texting some she suspected was their mother, but Vic firmly denied that.

Too firmly…..

After coming out changed and losing to convince her sister that black runners went well with the slacks because no one would see them anyway, but everyone would see her falling with every step that the low heels she was being forced into wearing, Y/n followed passively behind her sister and Matt out of her store, down the street and over to Vic’s car, climbing into the back.

When they were all buckled in, Vic turned around to look at Y/n, her hand out, “You’re bag Y/n.”

She clung to it tighter, “W-why do you need it?” She piped up, hoping to distract with kindness, “If you two want, you can give me you’re wallets, phones and keys and I’ll look after them!”

Vic, did not look amused. “Bag.”

Seeing no way out of this, Y/n shoved her bag into Vic’s hand and watched as Vic quickly found and took out her throw-over, tossing it over to Matt, who shoved it into the glove box.

“I look stupid!” Y/n sulked, looking out the window.

Matt sighed, turning to grin at her, “You look really nice, Y/n. I know a certain skeleton man is going to think you’re really pretty tonight.”

Blush exploded across her cheeks as she folded her arms, refusing to look at anyone. “Like hell he will. He’s going to think I look just as stupid as I feel!” she mumbled to herself.

Vic gaped at Y/n in shocked disbelief, her eyes flicking between her blush and her pouting while the car idling in the background, before she threw Matt the filthiest of glares. “You are in so much trouble mister!” Vic hissed to him, pulling out into traffic.

Matt held out his hands, “What?? For not telling you sooner?? What was I suppose to do?? Get involved?” He quickly turned to look at Y/n, “Hey Y/n, tell Vic what happened when Papyrus and I first met.”

“When Papyrus ran away crying because he thought I hadn’t told him that we were dating?”

Vic gasped, before she quickly punched Matt in the arm at the next set of lights.

“Ow! What did I do now??”

“Tell me you made sure to clear that up as soon as possible!” Vic growled, her hands clenching the steering wheel.

Both Matt and Y/n flashed each other a concerned look.

“Well-“

“You see-

There was the soul-crushing look.

“Look,” Y/n blurted out, no longer able to take the heat radiating off her sister, “It took me forever to realise what the issue was. For example, never use the word ‘mate’, it means dating to monsters. I mean, how was I suppose to know that?? All I knew was the Papyrus was talking to Matt and me and suddenly he’s out the door!” Y/n quickly looked outside, “It just didn’t make any sense to me, and I’m still confused if I’m perfectly honest!”

“And I thought it was best if I let them sort that out.” Matt said quietly, scooting away from Vic slightly.

She sighed heavily, “Please just tell me that you’ve done the adult thing and talked to Papyrus?”

Y/n rubbed the back of her head, “….eventually.”

Silence fell over the car, before Vic started mumbling to herself, “Knew there was something more to ‘nothing’ at Christmas!” Her tone turned into a high pitch mockery as she continued to drive, “How’s the shop Y/n? Oh, it’s fine. Anything new in your life? No.” She dissolved into more mutterings under her breath, making both Matt and Y/n seriously consider tucking and rolling.

~*~

Suffice to say, the car trip was strained. Matt tried to brighten the mood, but between Y/n’s growing fear as the area got more ‘neon’y and Vic still very much in a bad mood as she followed her GPS, he quickly gave up.

The appearance of the actual club did manage to shake everyone out of their funk, as three sets of jaws dropped. The building was huge and hot pink, with neon pink lights accentuating the colours from bright and vide into darker shades. An all too familiar robot 50-foot sign was laying on its side, the neon lights on it making it look like the robot was in the middle of a camera shoot with about a hundred cameras that were going off in very quick and very random sessions. The words ‘Fab-ME-lous’ were underneath the robot and the arm that wasn't holding his winning smile up was waving backwards and forwards over these words.

“Argh,” complained Vic, squinting against the glare the building was creating as she pulled into the barricaded parking block, “could they have made this place any brighter?”

She was promptly ignored as both Matt and Y/n had their faces pressed to the windows.

“Is-is that a rainbow waterfall made out of glitter??”

“Check out the constant shower of miniature Metatton robots!” She looked over to Vic, who watched a duck-looking monster approaching her car, “Is this normal for clubbing?”

“Pfft, no! But it does look cool.” She turned to grin quickly back at her, “Feeling nervous?”

Y/n didn’t have a chance to reply before the monster asked Vic, “Can I have your name?”

“Y/n L/n?” supplied Vic, after Y/n shrugged at her.

The monster touched the earpiece in his ear, repeating the names. After a brief moment, he bowed to them, “Would you like to exit now so that I can park and clean your car?”

“Park and clean?” Vic asked, looking around confused and pointed to the car parking block, “I-I thought I was going to park in there?”

The monster stood back up, gesturing to his uniform, “It’s my job to look after the guest cars. You can park if you want to, but if you get out here, you’re much closer to the entrance.”

After looking back at her passengers, Vic shrugged, “Um, okay then.” Everyone unbuckled their seatbelts and got out of the car. By the time Matt and Y/n walked around, Vic was leaning in and talking to the monster who had already slipped into the car, “Look, you don’t have to clean the car if you don’t want to. Just parking it is pretty amazing.”

The monster looked taken aback, before he grinned, “That’s really nice of you, but I’m wasn’t going to be the one cleaning your car. We actually have a monster that likes doing that type of stuff.”

“A monster that likes cleaning?” Vic asked, shocked.

The duck monster nodded. “Enjoy your night. Be sure to ask the receptionist at the front desk when you want your car back, and I’ll drive it up to you.”

And with that, he was gone.

“A monster that likes cleaning.” Vic said slowly as the three of them walked towards the club, “You know, even after all this time working with them, they can still surprise me.”

“Tell me about it.” mumbled Y/n next to her.

Matt looked across, “So I guess the photography business is still going strong?”

Vic smiled over, “As strong as coffee is.”

Matt chuckled, “Will you please teach your sister how to drink coffee already?”

“What’s wrong with a nice can of cold soft drink?” Y/n asked, indigent.

“soft drink’s a close second, but nothing can bet a bottle of ketchup.”

The three of them looked over to see Sans leaning casually on a pillar just outside the entrance in a dark blue suit and tie, with a yellow dinosaur monster in a polka-dotted dress standing shyly behind him, her tailed curled around her in apprehension.

“You must be Papyrus!” Vic beamed, strolled forward with her hand out, “My name is Victoria, but you can call me Vic, everyone does. I’m Y/n’s sister.”

Sans looked at her in surprise, his eyes darting to Y/n and Matt high-fiving behind her back, before he was grinning at Vic, offering his hand, “yep, that’s me, the great papyrus.” He gestured to the dinosaur monster behind him, “and this is my good friend alphys.”

Alphys blushed at having the attention on her, but she waved shyly, briefly meeting Vic’s smiling face before looking at Matt and Y/n, “He-hello.”

When Vic noticed she was by herself, she turned and glared at them, “Come on guys! Introduce yourself!”

Y/n followed behind Matt, who strolled towards Sans, his hand out. “Hello again Papyrus. How are things?”

Sans’s smile seemed to tighten as he looked at Matt, but still, he took the offered hand with a smile and a shrug, “oh, you know, a lot better, but it sure could have been better a lot sooner.”

“Hey,” Matt pulled Sans in, so the two of them stepped up to each other still holding hands, “Hindsight is always twenty-twenty, but I am sorry for the dama I cause. All I can say was I thought I was doing the right thing by letting them sort it out.”

Sans seemed to be considering this, his eyes searching Matt’s. After a moment, Sans pulled Matt into a brief hug, patting his back. “we’re good kid, we’re good.” Sans let him go, and the two men took a step back, with Sans putting his hands back into his pant’s pockets, “i can’t exactly claim i was very ‘proactive’ in asking and not assuming things either.”

“Is everything okay?” Vic asked her, leaning and whispering the question to Y/n as Sans was introducing Matt to Alphys.

Y/n smiled, “Yep, look at Matt’s back.”

Confused, Vic leaned around Y/n to see that Sans had somehow managed to put a note on him that read ‘i like back slaps.’

Before Vic could ask the obvious questions, Matt was looking back at her, “Hey Y/n, come over here and say hi already!”

Shyly, Y/n made her way over to Sans, whos grin broaden at her approach, “hello y/n. don’t you look nice tonight.”

She blushed, “Th-thanks,” Then she smiled when it clicked what him wearing a suit meant for him, “and don’t you look just snazzy in your suit. I’m genuinely shocked to see you out of your jacket.”

He sighed, looking down at himself, “trust me kid, this wasn’t entirely voluntary.”

“Oh, I know,” Y/n looked back at Vic, who was standing next to Matt and looking confused and disappointed, “Aren’t siblings just the worse?”

“Is that it??” Vic asked Matt quietly, gesturing between her and Sans, and very obviously disappointed.

Sans beamed as he eyed Vic and Matt, before turning and introducing Y/n to the dinosaur monster, “and while we have a chance, let me introduce you to my good friend, alphys.”

“Yours or your brothers?” Y/n whispered to him.

Sans chuckled, “mine, although,” he smiled at Alphys, “alphys gets along with everyone.”

Alphys blushed, looking shyly to her clawed painted  toes, “I-I-I do not.” When she saw Y/n smiling politely at her, she quickly looked away, “Hel-hello again.”

“Again?” Y/n asked, straining to recall ever seeing this monster.

While Alphys’s shoulder sagged and Sans gently patted her back in reassurance, a vague memory from a year ago floated to the surface for Y/n. “Wait! Did-did you come into my bookshop with that fish-looking monster, asking for a book?”

Alphys nodded, unable to raise her head.

“I am so sorry!” Y/n cried, reaching out with her hands, but then shyness quickly reeled them back, leaving with Y/n twisting her hands in front of her chest, “I-I forgot, I’m sorry. It-it’s just th-that it’s been y-years, and-“

Matt came over, patting her back, “Hey, it’s okay ya worrywart! Relax.”

Vic grabbed, Y/n shoulder and said to Alphys, “My sister tends to take things too personally and is probably thinking she just blew it with you.”

As Y/n blushed and buried her head in her hands, Sans moved over to throw an arm around Alpyhs, “alphys can be like that too.” He hugged her briefly, “she probably thinks she doesn’t leave lasting impressions. well, good impressions, anyway.”

As both a human and monster buried their head in their hands and were wishing they weren’t here, the three non-blushing people turned to each other.

“Is this everyone?” asked Vic, “Only the way Y/n was telling it, she made it seem like you invited everyone you ever knew.”

Sans chuckled, “oh, i certainly tried to.” He thumbed away from the building, “all the guard dogs are inside (trust me, it’s better that way), and we’re just waiting for my bro’s boss to get here and my bro and his friend to finish looking for you guys around the block.”

“Looking for us?....wait, did you say you had a brother?”

Before anyone could answer either of her questions, there was a duel cry of “Y/N!?” and “Alphys!?” off to the side and quickly moving in.

Next thing Y/n knew, she and all her blush were being picked up and twirled in a tight circle, pressed firmly to a rib cage in a tighter hug.

“Y/N! I’M SO GLAD TO SEE YOU!!” Papyrus pulled her from their hug and held her up in the air, beaming up at her, “YOU LOOK ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL!”

She smiled even as her blush darkened, “Th-thank you.” she eyed him in his tailored fitting pink-salmon coloured suit, matching coloured vest, red tie and what looked like his scarf tuned in his white shirt, making his chest puff out a bit.

There was something about the fit, or the design or perhaps even the colours, but he was just killing the whole look.

He-he looked really good!

Once THAT thought entered her mind, suddenly all her hands wanted to do was hide her face forever and attempt to block from the whole world’s sight of the tomato she just became.

Papyrus pulling her in and cooing, “Y/N, YOUR FACE IS DOING THAT RED THING AGAIN!” certainly did not help!

While Y/n might have been too busy closing her eyes and wishing for sweet death and Papyrus was peering at her, concern clear across his face even as he blushed at seeing her like this, their two lots of family and loved ones were just staring in awe at the sight the two made.

“Are-are you seeing this babe!” Undyne whispered to Alphys, who she currently had curled up in her arms, the dinosaur monster equally staring at the sigh with both her hands covering her mouth.

All Alphys could do was nod, already writing notes in her mind about all the different shipping stories she was going to write! M-maybe one where Papyrus was the boisterous human bookshop owner and Y/n was the shy monster looking for a book?

“I’m sorry, but who is that skeleton that just reduced my sister into a blushing mess??” Vic turned to look at Sans suspiciously, who suddenly looked nervous, “And why do I think I’ve been the butt of a very unfunny misunderstanding?”

Sans coughed nervously, before reaching out with his hand again, “y-yeah, hi, i’m sans. sans the skeleton.”

“And you would be the…older brother?” Vic asked, taking his hand and eyeing him.

Sans nodded, grinning, “and judging by the protect aura i’m getting from you, i’d also guess you’re the older sibling too?”

Vic smiled, “Of course.” Then she pulled her hand back and watched as Papyrus brought Y/n for a hug, patting her back softly in an effort to help calm her little sister. Vic could only grin, knowing that wouldn’t stop her quick-to-blush sister. She’d have to make sure to keep the attention off Y/n for a while so she'd have a chance to calm down.

Planning to do just that, she turned to Matt to say something, but stopped when a buff man in a tight-fitting v-top, covered in tattoos and his hair pulled back into a deadlocks ponytail came wandering over.

“Sans!” the buff man called, waving as he got closer, looking past Vic.

Sans stuck his hand out, which the new human eyed carefully before shaking, “hey pete. glad you could come.”

“No whoopie cushion?” Pete asked, standing back.

Sans shook his head sadly, “nah, and it’s not from a lack of trying to sneak one in. paps is getting harder to sneak things past him,” Sans nodded his head over to Papyrus and Y/n, wiggled his eyebrows, “especially when he’s motivated.”

Pete laughed uproariously, startling Papyrus from his concern over Y/n.

“PETE!” Papyrus called, bringing Y/n over with him, still hugging her but seem to have forgotten he was, “I’M GLAD YOU MADE IT!”

Pete’s eyes twinkled as he took in the sight of Y/n still burying her face in Papyrus arms, “You have no idea how glad I am to be here!”

“Excuse me, um, Papyrus?”

Papyrus looked down to see Vic, standing off to his side.

Vic smiled, placing a hand to her chest, “My name is Vic, and I would like my tomato back.”

“YOUR TOMATO?” Papyrus asked, confused.

While Y/n groaned, Vic laughed softly, “I’m Y/n’s older sister, and I-“

“YOU ARE??!” Quickly, Papyrus reached out and lifted Vic up into the hug too, spinning both sisters, “I’M SO HAPPY TO MEET YOU!!”

When he let them both go, both sisters were a little dizzy and both were blushing (although, Y/n knew she was bound to be reder).

“Now who’s the tomato?” Y/n whispered to her flabbergastered sister.

Vic turned to her, gesturing to Papyrus’s back as Sans had quickly pulled his brother off to the side for a quick word, “What was that?? Does he always just hug people like that??”

Y/n chuckled, blushing again as Papyrus quickly came back, now offering his hand to Vic.

“SORRY HUMAN! AS I HAVE JUST BEEN INFORMED, HUMANS DON’T USUALLY GREET EACH OTHER WITH HUGS.” Papyrus rubbed the back of his head, looking away with a shy blush, “A-AND I WANT TO MAKE A GOOD FIRST IMPRESSION, SO I APOLOGISE FOR HUGGING YOU.”

Vic looked between his offered hand and his blush, before throwing her arms around him, laughing as she hugged him, “Where have you been all of Y/n’s life?! My god, has she ever needed someone like you, you giant cinnamon roll!”

“Vic!” cried Y/n, blushing further and re-burring her face in her hands as Papyrus quickly and gladly returned the hug.

Vic let go of Papyrus to face her sister, “I’m sorry Y/n, but someone had to say it!”

As Y/n looked out of her hands to glare at her beaming sister, Papyrus moved to shake Matt’s hand.

“IT’S GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN HUMAN!”

“I-It is?” Matt asked unsure, looking between Papyrus’s beaming face and Sans giving him the thumbs up as he came to stand next to his brother.

Papyrus continued to shake Matt’s hand vigorously, “I’VE WANTED TO SAY SORRY FOR THE LONGEST TIME ABOUT HOW I LEFT SO RUDELY, AND NOW THAT I KNOW YOU’RE NOT Y/N’S MATE, I FIND MYSELF SO MUCH HAPPIER TO SEE YOU AND SAY THAT TO YOU IN PERSON!”

“O-oh!” Matt replied, very much thrown off his game for a change.

Papyrus let go of his hand and stood back, eyeing Matt’s outfit, “HUMAN! WHY AREN’T YOU WEARING A TIE?”

Matt quickly recovered and grinned, making a sweeping gesture over his clothes with flare, “It’s more fashionable not to.” He seemed to realise something, because he corrected, “Sorry, more fashionable for humans.”

“REALLY?!” Papyrus seemed to consider that as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully and looking over at Y/n. Quickly, he took off his tie and slipped it into a pocket.

Sans, seeing what his brother did, just as quickly pulled his own tie off, as well as unbuttoning a few top buttons and seemingly happier for the adjustments. With a content sigh, he slipped his own tie into a pocket, before grinning pleasantly at Matt, “thanks pal. wanna tell him it’s more fashionable to wear sweatpants while you’re at it?”

While Matt and Pete laughed, Papyrus turned to glare at a grinning Sans, “I CAN SEE THAT THEY’RE NOT WEARING SWEATPANTs!” He lent in for a closer look at both humans’ pants, before looking up questioningly at them “RIGHT?”

“Right.” Agreed Matt, still smiling.

“Although you could probably lose the jacket.” shrugged Pete as he winked at Sans, gesturing to himself and his v-top.

Beaming, Sans quickly took off his jacket and flung it over a shoulder, looking miles more comfortable and happier.

Papyrus huffed, “BUT YOU LOOKED REALLY SPIFFY IN YOUR COMPLETE OUTFIT, SANS! AND AFTER I WENT THROUGH ALL THE TROUBLE GETTING YOU TO WEAR THE WHOLE THING PROPERLY!”

Sans shrugged, “ah well, good while it lasted.”

Papyrus pulled put his phone with a sigh and was looking down forlornly at the screen, “AT LEAST I WAS ABLE TO GET ONE PHOTO.”

“…..wait, what?”

While Sans fought with Papyrus to show him what he was talking about and Matt and Pete laughed at their antics, Vic was hugging Y/n to her side, beaming at the two lady monsters.

“So you already met Y/n before Papyrus?”

Undyne beamed back, her own sharp-tooth grin flashing in the neon light, “Yep! Me and Alphys were hunting the entire city for a whole day looking for both this book and a non-jerky human salesperson, and that’s when you’re little sis turned up!”

“Oh, I’m sure my sister’s too shy to ever be a jerk to anyone.” Vic said cheerfully, hugging Y/n closer.

“She better be!” Undyne leaned in towards Y/n, so all she could focus on was her sharp teeth, her blazing red long fringe covering her eye patch and the threaten fist, “If she hurts the soft goofball, I’ll be chasing her out of town with my spears!”

“What if Papyrus hurts Y/n?” Vic asked, moving closer to chest up to Undyne with a challenging smile.

Undyne looked surprised by Vic’s challenge stare and stance, but she gladly pushed her shoulders back and stepped up. “Papyrus hurt anyone??” She briefly looked over at Papyrus using his superior height on Sans to keep his phone out of reach, only for it to mysteriously disappear much to his eye-boggling confusion. Looking back at Y/n, she grinned and pointed to herself, cocky, “If that boy ever hurts shopkeep here, I’ll kick his bone butt so far around the world, he’ll land right where I first kicked him, only for me to kick him again!”

She threw her head back and laughed.

Grinning, Vic firmly stuck out her hand to laughing monster, who beamed as she firmly grabbed it, both women matching enthusiasm and vigour as they shook hands, “Undyne? I'll be holding you to that. And just know that I’ll happily be kicking Y/n the other direction around the world if she hurts the cinnamon roll. Deal?”

“Deal!”

“Don’t you just want to die of embarrassment?” Y/n asked Alphys as she looked away with a blush, clinging to what she recognised as a kindred spirit.

Alphys smiled shyly over at her, “U-Undyne’s just kidding. I know it might not seem like it, but she really l-likes you; you should have heard her talking about you after Gytmas meal, and how happy Papyrus has been since he met you. We-we all like you so much already, just because Papyrus is so ecstatic about talking about you.”

Y/n’s blushes exploded and she quickly looked away, feeling slightly betrayed by what she thought was a fellow shy person! “Th-thank you! Um, h-how do you know Undyne?”

“Me?!”

Before Alphys had a chance to respond or prepare, Undyne swooped her back and passionately kissed her on the mouth, quickly reducing Alphys in a dizzy, mild nose-bleed, blushing mess in her arms, fanning herself.

Grinning, Undyne quickly nuzzled the continuing blushing dinosaur to look at the shocked sisters, “Alphys and I are bounded. I believe that’s what you humans call ‘married’.”

“Oh, well, very late congratulations.” smiled Vic politely, recovering quickly as Y/n looked quickly away, blushing further.

“Thanks!” Undyne allowed Alpyhs to stand on her own feet (even if she was a bit unsteady and was still fanning her self), before calling out to the others, “All right nerds! It’s time we headed inside while the night’s young!”

“I COULDN’T AGREE MORE!” beamed Papyrus as he bounded over to Y/n, throwing an arm around her shoulder and steering her towards the club. With a grand gesture, he pointed to the club’s entrance, “LET’S US SING AND DANCE AND LAUGH THE NIGHT AWAY, CELEBRATING THE DESTINED TO BE SUCCESSFUL BOOK CREATED THE GREAT PAPYRUS AND THE SMART AND TALENTED Y/N!!”

“Yay!” Y/n mocked cheered, blushing at the compliment.

Without looking back, Papyrus eagerly pulled Y/n by her hand towards the club’s entrance, his own beaming smile complementing Y/n’s shy one in the flashing neon lights.

“We have to get them together.” Vic stated, like it was just a fact, watching the two moving ahead of them.

As one, the whole group nodded, and followed Y/n and Papyrus inside.

 

Next chapter is called: Shippers a’hoy!

 

?!?FANART?!?

InkForOne- ([Blush and squealing nosies!!](https://inkforone.deviantart.com/art/Yes-Incredibly-Smart-and-Beautiful-Y-N-743897335?ga_submit_new=10%3A1525707761))

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I'm back and MAN did I miss writing!!  
> Okay, two new things; First up, I am now doing in character responses on my Discord server!! This means you can ask any of the characters, from any of my stories, questions/do something /say something to them, and I'll respond as that character! I've already had some amazing people ask me some interesting questions that really helped me figure more about these guys and it's been a butt load of fun for me. Check out the rules to figure out the 'how to', or ask around; I can name several people who would more than help you =) (You know who you are, ya sweethearts!)  
> Second thing; I have another story!! I know, WTF, right? It's called Bitty Hunt Shenanigans, and as I'm sure you've already guessed, it's the place where I'll put POV, What-if's and general requests that I get for Bitty Hunt. So if you've got something you'd like to see, make sure to leave a comment, explaining it over with that story. With that story, the more people who comment on your idea and express a 'Wow, I'd like to see that too!' the more likely I'll be inclined to do it.....or I might see your idea and think 'Oh, I just HAVE to write this!'. It's going to be updated when I feel like it/ have time, so don't expect it to update automatically on Saturdays; I'll update as I complete requests, so check it out more regularly, I guess (*Shrug*).
> 
> I'm so sorry I missed June, and I really to make it up! Problem is, I'm still busy. Although, I have more time now, so I'm hoping to get a second update this month, but no promises. As always, I'll update the five main stories on a Saturday, so check in then.  
> All I can say is I'm keen to get back into writing =)!


	15. Shippers a’hoy!

As Y/n was guided into the club by Papyrus, through the club’s grand doors, she didn’t know what she expected to see.

If she was honest, probably more flashing neon lights.

The reception area was grand, with marble white floors and surfaces that had a touch of silver highlighting to their edges. Huge, red curtains hung at the opposite side on the entrance, and Y/n could only believe that they hide the way into the club. She certainly didn’t hear anything coming from that direction; the only sound she could hear was the soft, classical music playing from speakers she couldn’t see.

A graceful, stunning deer-monster was standing behind the reception desk, silver jewellery hanging elegantly from her spiral horns with her own gorgeous dress clinging to her petite form.

She smiled at them as Papyrus continued to guide Y/n towards her, before hugging her firmly to his side, looking proud and confident.

“THE GREAT PAPYRUS AND Y/N HERE, WITH THE REST OF THEIR FAMILY AND FRIENDS!”

Y/n looked away from watching everyone else coming to stand behind her and Papyrus as the club’s door closed behind them, and look back at the deer monster, who slowly blinked her incredibly long eyelashes as she looked down at the screen before her.

“The party with most of the royal guard in it?”

“That’s us!” beamed Undyne, pushing her way to the front to lean on the receptionist desk, flashing her sharp smile, “How have they been? Behaving themselves I hope?”

The deer monster looked slowly up, smiling softly, “Oh, they’ve been a bit energetic…..all the damages have been recorded and a bill will be sent to the Royal Guard treasury at the end of the evening.”

“What?!?” Undyne turned quickly back to Alphys, placing her hands on her shoulder, “Excuse me, love.”

Without another word, Undyne marched off towards the curtains, angrily tossing them aside before disappearing from sight.

“Um, everything okay?” Vic asked, looking concerned.

Alphys, still recovering, blushed further at having the attention on her, “Oh, y-yes! Undyne’s just gone in to um….well, she’s the captain of the Royal Guard, so I’m sure she’s going to discipline whoever broken whatever it was.”

The deer monster looked around the group, smiling, “Just a friendly reminder that MTT Fub-Me-Lous respects and values safe driving. I’m sure that you have driven here have already had your car and keys taken?” When Matt nodded and Vic was looking at her suspiciously, the deer monster shrugged, “It is club policy to refrain from handing over keys to drunk drivers, so keep that in mind that we will be testing for sobriety when you decide to leave, and we do not tolerance aggressive behaviour in any capacity.” For the first time, there was something darker to her smiling demeanour of glamour.

“So that’s why you offer to park cars. What happens if we can’t drive home?” Vic asked.

“Normally, we’d charge you for the taxi service back home as our staff drive you back in your car.” The deer monster shrugged, “But since you are Metatton’s personal guest here tonight, that service would be provided for free, should it come to that.”

“Okay.” Vic looked over at Y/n and Matt, “I wasn’t planning on having anything since I’ve got work tomorrow, but I’d be lying if I said knowing my car and keys are already out of my hands makes me feel better.”

The deer monster had steeped away from the receptionist desk and moved to stand in front of the curtains, bowing her head before making an elegant hand gesture towards them, “Please, follow me.”

Feeling apprehensive, Y/n stuck to Papyrus’s side, letting him lead the way as she passively followed close behind him, smiling gratefully back at her sister when she grabbed and squeezed her hand reassuringly on her other side.

She still felt really awkward in this getup and was still super nervous about embarrassing herself and getting cornered by Papyrus’s group trying to get to know her, but knowing that Matt and Vic were here really did help ease those nerves. They were both pretty good about recognising when she could really do with a break….even if they were generally responsible for placing her in those type of situations in the first place. Always trying to help her get out and ‘meet’ new people, Y/n knew that their intentions were good, it was just…..sometimes she wished they would leave her alone.

The moment she passed through the red curtains, whatever she had been thinking was blown clear out of her mind as music blasted her ears, kind of like those times she forgot that her headphones were on the max setting. Flinching, she looked wildly back at the curtains, trying to understand how a flimsy curtain could have blocked that sound so completely?! What laws of physics were they breaking to make that happen??

However she was going to phases that question vanished from her lips as she turned back around and her eyes took in the sights of the rest of the club.

Rich, vibrate colours in such strange and interesting patterns was the main colour scheme of the whole place, so that no two places looked the same, yet the whole room seemed to flow and fade into each other so well that were was no distinct or separate sections. There were two sections that lead to upstairs…only, there weren’t any stairs that she could see that would get you up there. Under these upstairs sections were booth and tables, filled with mostly monsters but a few humans, talking and laughing over drinks and finger food. A large and crowded bar lined the back wall, with many clear tubes filled with strange, glowing liquid that swirled and flowed in the tubes. In fascination, Y/n watched one tube filled with a bubble of blue liquid travelled up a path of a tube and came pouring out the end, only instead of spilling out as blue liquid like she expected, the liquid changed into a ball of light, that drifted off to join other lights, bubbles, smoke, glitter clouds and furling ribbons. Most of the space was taken up by a dance floor that lightened up and swirled around the body of people dancing to the beat. An elaborate, high tech DJ booth stood off to the side, but no one was tending it, even if it sounded like the music currently playing would have been something that required one. Y/n couldn’t say she enjoyed club dancing music, but even she was finding the music currently playing catchy.

The deer monster lead them over to a clear section just under the upstairs area.

Passing out stylish bracelets to everyone, she explained, “Theses bracelets are used to help you get up and down between the areas for just tonight. They’re yours to keep and will give you free drinks and food if you just show them to staff members or use them at our tables. Don’t worry about them automatically shrinking to fit your wrists; they come off if you tickle them.”

“Tickle them?” Vic asked, as Y/n fought against the mild panic of having something just shrinking to her wrist size without warning.

The deer monster nodded, slipping one on her own wrist, before ticking it with her hoved fingers. The bracelets quickly expanded and she slipped it off, showing them.

“Cool!” Matt beamed, looking back at his, “And how do we use them to get up?”

Slipping hers back on, the deer monster held up her hand. Everyone watched as the bracelet unwound into one long, thin string that eventually reached up and latched onto the railing above. She made to sit down on a chair that wasn’t there, but rather than topple over like Y/n thought she would, she hovered in mid-air, before being lifted up by the string, that gently lowered her to the upper floor above. Y/n could only stare as she repeated the process in reverse, come to stand once again on the ground floor after getting up of her non-existent chair.

She pointed to the bracelet, “These are designed to null your full weight once it’s activated, so don’t worry about your arm breaking or anything horrible like that. The bracelet works on a time delay and set instructions, so even if you’re a bit *ahem*, inebriated, you won’t have to worry about forgetting how they work or falling from any dangerous heights. Yours are keyed into your private area and they won’t work on any other area or indeed, after tonight. As you saw, I prefer sitting because I’m in a dress, but you don’t need to.”

Sans grinned, leaning forward to look at everyone, “interesting note, it was actually alphys here who helped design the technology for these things.”

Alphys blushed, “Well-well, that’s not technically true. I-I was looking at creating lightweight technology to aide different able-body monsters.”

“That’s really impressive Alphys.” Pete grinned, as the other humans quickly nodded.

As Alphys played with her tail shyly, the deer monster bowed her head with a smile, “I hope you enjoy your night at MTT Fab-ME-lous.”

“i’m sure we will.” Sans grinned, waving goodbye to her as she walked back the way she had come from.

Y/n was looking apprehensive between her bracelet and the height of the upper level, really wishing that they just had normal stairs. Vic came up to her, with Matt standing on her other side, both looking at her in concern.

“So, how are you feeling Y/n?” Vic asked her.

She chuckled nervously, looking between them, “Oh please, don’t pretend that either of you is okay with this.”

She might be more nervous than either of them, but there was no mistaking the way Vic was avoiding her eye or Matt’s quick denial response.

Pete, on the other hand, came stepping forward, looking at his bracelet thoughtfully, “I’ll gladly admit that I have my doubts about a little string lifting my weight.” He looked around, “We sure there isn’t stairs for big guys like me?”

“I assure you, the technology is perfectly safe.” Alphys tried saying, confidently but failing towards the end.

Papyrus beamed, puffing out his chest, “FEAR NOT HUMANS! MAGIC LIKE THIS WAS QUITE COMMON IN THE UNDERGROUND! WE USE TO USE ALL SORTS OF WILD AND FRANKLY SUPERIOR MOODS OF TRANSPORT TO GET FROM SPACE FROM SPACE. LOOK, Y/N AND I WILL GO FIRST TO PROVE IT!”

He reached for her, but she quick shrank back, “I-I’d like to see someone else go first, ac-actually.”

Papyrus’s shoulders shank as Sans moved to stand next to him, “no problem kid.” He looked over at Alphys, “how about us monsters show the humans how to travel in style?”

Alphys nodded, even if Papyrus continued to look disappointed as he too nodded. They lined up, with the humans watching them apprehensively.

“just try to relax guys.” Sans instructed, “this kind of tech was designed to be used safely by trashed, drunk monsters, and i’ll remind you that some of those guys have a habit of using their magic without meaning to.”

“YOU’LL BE SAFE Y/N.” Papyrus reassured her, keeping his eyes on her, “I’LL BE RIGHT ABOVE YOU, READY TO CATCH YOU IF YOU TRIP.”

She blushed at the idea that even Papyrus knew she was going to trip, but tried keeping her hurt feelings off her face as she watched the monsters.

As one, they lifted this hands up, and everyone watched how the bracelets unravelled into long thin strings that latched onto the railing above.

“LOOK Y/N! PERFECTLY SAFE!”

Papyrus was kicking out each of his legs, showing how his hand never moved but the rest of him could. While Papyrus was doing pull-ups, Sans was lightly swinging from his hand and Alphys had curled into a ball, her tail wrapped around her and holding her dress down. All at once, the three monsters rose, with Papyrus posing as he flew in the air. Once they were settled on the upper level, Papyrus came rushing over, waving frantically down at them as Sans and Alphys grinned and waved down too.

“Well, that didn’t look so bad!” Pete looked around at the rest of the group, “As one then? One, two, three!”

Y/n lifted her hand, along with everyone else. In fascination, she watched as all the bracelets unravelled and uncurled into several long thin strings, each hooking to the railing above them. Y/n didn’t feel any lighter, but as she looked around at the others. Almost everyone was tentatively pulling themselves up by their hand, gasping at the sensation of just hovering in the air.

Matt grinned over at her as he swung from his one hand, “Y/n! Try jumping!”

Looking back at her hand, she gave a light jump, and gasped when the sensation of gravity felt so light, she feared she’d jump above her own hand. Impulsively, she flexed, easily pulling herself back down and firmly to the ground. It had felt like nothing! The complete absence of weight.

Suddenly, she was pulled up into the air, shrieking along with everyone else. Pulling herself into a ball, she watched as the string pulled her in, up and over the railing, before holding her above the ground with enough clearance for her feet and legs.

Papyrus was there, waiting for her, and it was he who held her under her arms when at last her weight returned and her string let go of the railing and wound back into the bracelet it had been before.

“I’VE GOT YOU! YOU CAN RELAX NOW Y/N!”

Slowly, Y/n allowed herself to relax enough to drop her legs, where Papyrus gently settled her down.

It did not feel natural to be standing, but she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t proud of herself for not stumbling. What helped was seeing her usually unflustered sister and friend look just like how she felt; about five seconds from falling to the ground and crawling for the rest of their lives.

“see guys?” Sans grinned, coming over to grin smugly at Matt bent over, “not so bad, right?”

Matt could only look up at him, glaring playfully, which only made Sans smile further.

“Hey nerds! What took you all so long?!! Get over here already!!”

Everyone turned to Undyne waving frantically an empty collection of chairs and booths around a low table. There were a few other similar setups around the area (with one of them looking absolutely trashed) that other monsters (mostly dog looking monsters) were already sitting and laughing around as they drank and ate their own food, but what drew her eyes and horror was a slightly uplifted karaoke stage. Even the fact she was so high and could easily see over the railings and down below her hardly mattered when she heard Matt and Vic hum in appreciation as they took in the private area.

“This is really impressive!” Vic said, her eyes shimmering as she head turned around and took in all the sights.

Matt turned to her, “Just how did you ever meet a guy like this??”

“Damned if I know.” She mumbled her reply.

She had already told this story to Matt (and would most likely have her sister hounding her for details later), but that didn’t make the fact that what had been a stab in the dark for her at some random convention with very low chance of probability of working any less amazing that it apparently lead to this!

Seriously, if she didn’t know any better, she would have said her life recently had become some sort of contrived story where none of this was by chance; just some sort of plot device some hacky fanfic writer was using to lead to something later. Maybe a big epic battle or inspiring speech in front of a waring crowd.

Smiling nervously at the thought, Y/n and everyone else came walking over to Undyne, who planted a big kiss on Alphys as soon as she was close enough to do so. As Alphys blushed heavily, everyone else moved to sit at the various seats, with Papyrus sitting firmly by Y/n’s side as she sat down next to Vic, blushing when both people on either side of her moved in closer to her and trapping her there. When Undyne saw Matt past her, her eyes lit up and she smacked Matt’s back hard.

“Hey there human! No need to be shy! Don’t think I’ve forgotten about you and that I’m not going to accommodate your wishes!”

“Excuse me?” Matt asked, rubbing his back.

Undyne closed her eye and waved both her hands dismissively around, grinning, “No need to thank me…um, what’s your name human?”

“Matt.”

Grabbing his shoulders, Undyne guided him to the armchair, that had it's back faced the rest of the room, the one closest to the centre of the room.

Pushing him down into it, Undyne called out, “Hey everyone! Come and say hi to this, and every human over here!” She pointed to Y/n, who shrank back, “This is Y/n, and she and Papyrus are the reason your mangy butts are here wreaking stuff in the first place! Be polite and represent the Royal Guard proudly!”

In a flurry of movement, the rest of the room moved towards them, making a line as everyone back slapped Matt, and shook Y/n’s, Vic’s and Pete’s hands, thanking her personally and telling her their names. With every new name, Y/n’s panic rose as the pressure to remember every name to the right face grew. By the time the last dog monster nodded to her and moved away, she knew she had forgotten half of them already, lazily calling them ‘Small Dog monster’ and ‘Tall Dog monster’ in her head. Dread filled her stomach at the idea that she might be meeting them again, already visioning herself standing there blankly as they looked on at her, expectantly.

Papyrus sighed next to her as he watched the last monster head off back to their table, “I WANTED TO BE IN THE ROYAL GUARD. TRAINED FOR YEARS FOR IT TOO. STILL, THE RESERVE ISN’T SO BAD.”

“I didn’t know you wanted to be in the Royal Guard…or that you’re in the reserve.” She said, genuinely shocked she didn’t know.

If there was one thing she had come to learn about Papyrus, it was just how quick he was to share details about his life. It was genially shocking that she didn’t know this about him; she could still clearly remember being told a great number of things about him at their very first meeting!

“I think this would be a great opportunity to get to know each other while we’re all here.” Pete grinned, looking around, “Why don’t I get us a round of drinks and something to snack on?”

“no need to go far.” Sans pointed to the middle of the low table (that was closer to a light than a table) they were surrounding, that had pictures of various food and drinks, “just tap what you want.”

To demonstrate, Sans leaned forward and looked around at the options on the table, before hitting the picture that was labelled ‘Fire rum’. Soon, a glass that looked like the picture came through the table, being pushed by unseen forces and apparently unperturbed by the laws of physics as it passed right through the table’s solid matter.

“ta-da.” Sans sang, sitting back with his drink and taking a sip.

“I would have thought for sure you would have gone for something with tomato in it.” Y/n said, grinning over at Sans as Vic and Matt marvelled at the table, everyone else already leaning in and looking to order.

Sans grinned back, “can’t deny i have a fondness for the fruit, but i’ve been known to have other tastes outside of it. remind me to tell you about my vendors underground.”

“Why are these drinks classified ‘magic’?” Vic looked up and around at everyone else, “Does that mean it’s only for monsters?”

Undyne snorted, rolling her eye as she picked up her drink, “Nah, those are just drinks that have a bit of magic in them. They’re meant to do weird shit like make your skin glow or make you blow bubbles or some something.” She gestured to Vic, “To impressing and ‘wow’ humans.”

“Oooohh.” Vic’s eyes widened as she looked back at the table, and she wasn’t alone in doing so.

“Oh, Vic!” Y/n nudged her with her shoulder as she remembered something she had to tell her, “We humans have magic!”

Vic turned and gapped at her, “We do??”

“A-yeap!”

“Y/N AND I HAVE BEEN WORKING ON COOKING WITH HUMAN MAGIC!” Papyrus hugged her and leaned around her, looking over at her sister’s amazed face, “SHE’S BEEN COOKING WITH MAGIC FOR A WHOLE DAY NOW AND SHE’S REALLY IMPROVED A LOT!”

“That’s so cool!” Matt beamed, lifting his glass at her, “And something I want to hear all about, and in great details”

“Hell yes!” Pete beamed, sitting back with his drink after placing a few plates of hot chips at both ends of the table. He playfully shook his fist at Papyrus, “As your boss, I must say I’m quite upset with you for keeping ‘humans can cook with magic’ to yourself, boy.”

“It-it’s not as flashy as it seems.” Y/n mumbled, waiting for the drink she picked to arrive, “And we’re still trying to figure out the full range of what humans are capable.” She took her drink and looked over at Pete, “At best, magic gives humans a bit of energy and is more of a novelty thing really. Not really ‘cooking with magic’.”

“Ah well, a boss can dream.” Pete chuckled as Matt looked disappointed.

Deciding something, Vic leaned towards the table and ran her hand along the entire magic drink section, beaming.

“Ah…weren’t you planning on remaining sober?” Y/n asked, watching as the small forest of drinks arrived.

“I am, but then,” She turned and smiled at her, “these aren’t just for me….are they, fellow human?”

“Um?”

Vic passed out the drinks, moving one in front of everyone, “I’m not asking that everyone drinks or even that you drink the whole thing,” leaning back, she gestured to the over half of the drinks still in front of her, “but I figured that these work with just a mouth full, and it seems like a fun thing to do as we get to know each other?”

“I can get behind that!” Pete grabbed his drink (which was served in a glass that could only be described as a mushroom, where the drink was defying gravity inside its cap) and took a long draft from the straw leading up into it.

“Not too bad, got a bit of a pineapple flavour, um, what’s happening to me?”

What was happening was that his normally deep voice was getting higher and higher in pitch till it sounded like a chipmunk was talking to them. Stranger still was how he rose off his seat with his pitch, coming to hover on his chair rather than sitting on it. Everyone else was snorting and giggling into their drinks, as Pete tested out his voice, laughing his normally deep booming laugh in joy, but sounding nothing like he normally did. Everyone only laughed harder.

“Okay! Enough.” Pete stood up to hover on the ground with the drink he had ordered, placing the magic drink back over the icon it had come from, “So, my name’s Pete, and I’m that boy’s boss.” He pointed to Papyrus, before grinning and thumbing her, “I meet Y/n here just as the boy was hugging her in front of my café. I had never seen a person turn so red or the boy happier, and I’ll remind everyone here that Papyrus actually kissed me on his first day on the job!”

As Y/n buried her face in her hands and Vic hugged her side laughing with everyone else, Papyrus blushed, gapping at Pete, “P-PETE?!? I NEVER KISSED YOU!”

Pete grinned smugly over at him, “Really Papyrus? Did you accidentally trip and your teeth landed on my cheek?”

“WELL-WELL, I-I THOUGHT IT WAS TRADITIONAL!” Papyrus looked around employing around the table, “I THOUGHT I WAS SUPPOSED TO DO THAT TO A CHIEF TEACHING ME! I READ IT IN A FANCY COOKING BOOK!”

“Ya never kissed me, you goofball!” Undyne beamed.

“s’cause you’ve got fishy breath.” Sans stood up with his drink, that looked like liquid fire in his glass, winking over at the women monsters, “guess i’ll either need to kiss you myself or ask alphys?”

Alphys buried her face in her hands as Undyne hugged her firmly to her side, snapping her teeth at Sans, “You know, one of you bros have to tell me how the hell you kiss without any lips.”

Sans winked, puckering his teeth at the grinning fish monster, “mhwa, and now, without further ado.”

Sans took a drink, placing the glass back on the icon on the table and winking at everyone at the table as he said, “someone here try telling me that skeletons aren’t the hottest monsters.”

His skull burst into flames, creating the illusion that he had flame hair that waved and flickered with his movements. Seeing he had everyone’s undivided attention, he began to pose, dragging his hand through the flames and treating it like it was legit hair.

“SANS! I DID NOT NEED TO SEE MY OWN BROTHER GYRATING HIS HIPS TODAY OR ANY OTHER DAY!”

Hearing Papyrus complain like that broke the building tension as everyone snorted, which quickly turned into a new round of laughter. When it died down, Sans dropped himself back into his seat with a glad sigh.

“s’okay bro. i know what the people want.” He leaned back, after taking a few chips, “right, so i’m the older brother of that great guy right there.” Sans pointed towards Papyrus, who sat up a litter straighter. “guess you could say i’m self-employed, but i do help out occasionally with alphys there in the lab, which is how we know each other, but then again, most monsters know each other to various degrees. i meet y/n when i went to her shop with undyne, and yeah, i’ll admit i was there to make sure she was a decent person.” Sans meet her shy eyes, his perpetual grin softening, “sorry i gave you such hard time y/n, and i look forward to hanging out more with you in the future, if i get the chance to, of course.”

“S-sure.” She said shyly, taking a sip from her glass and looking hurriedly away.

“Alright, my turn!”

Undyne lifted up her glass, which, rather than have just strange looking liquid in it, had a simple green dragon running around in its base, trying to get out. Reaching it, Undyne grabbed and lifted the dragon out in her hand, seemingly unimpressed with the dragon’s attempts to bite her. Tossing the dragon in whole, Undyne swallowed it whole, slamming the now empty cup on its icon. Everyone watched as wings burst out her back, her fingers turned into wicked claws and a spiked tail shoot out of her backside.

“Woah!” Matt cried out as all the humans jumped back in alarm.

Undyne threw her head back, her new wings flapping, “Oh, don’t look so scared nerds! It’s only smoke!” To demonstrate, she ran a hand through her wings, which moved and shifted out of the way like a cloud would, only to quickly reform back into wings.

“Now,” Undyne turned back to everyone, one foot standing on the table as she posed, “I’m the Captain of the Royal Guard, and I’ve been doing that since before we monsters came to the surface. You humans haven't made that an easy job, but things are improving, so I guess it’s not all that bad. I knew Papyrus when the dweeb here came knocking on my door every day, just begging for a chance to join the Guard.”

“I KNEW YOU WERE MISTAKEN UNDYNE.” Papyrus insisted, “I KNEW IF YOU JUST GAVE ME A CHANCE, I’D PROVE MYSELF STRONG ENOUGH!”

“Right.” Undyne looked unease with that, but quickly moved on, “Turns out, we didn’t need too many guards once we were on the surface as our two races quickly hatched out a plan that kept both sides peaceful. Nowadays, I just play peacekeeper and oversee this lot,” she waved a hand towards the rest of the room, where a few cheered “Captain!”, before looking back at the group, “and I train and build up the reserve.”

“What does that reserve do?” Y/n asked, looking over at Papyrus.

He smiled proudly, “WE’RE BEING TRAINED UP IN CASE WE’RE EVER NEEDED TO EXPAND THE ROYAL GUARD FOR EMERGENCY SITUATIONS. SANS IS IN IT TOO!”

“And has yet to turn up to a single training session!” Undyne raged, staring Sans down as her smoke tail swished in irritation.

Sans shrugged, “running behind work is a form of training.”

As Undyne continued to glare at his smug smile, Y/n leaned into a sighing Papyrus and asked, “He’s already said something like that before, hasn’t he? I’m not going crazy, right?”

“YOU MIGHT BE, CONSIDERING HOW MY BROTHER LIKES TO TELL THE SAME JOKES AND PUNS OVER AND OVER AGAIN!”

Sans grinned over at Papyrus, lifting up the fire drink towards him, “sick burn bro.”

“NYEH!” Papyrus cried out, his eyes boggling.

As everyone giggled, Undyne leaned into towards Alphys, who was holding a drink with a cool dry ice effect, “You wanna introduce yourself babe?”

“O-Oh…..okay.” She looked at the drink in her hand, before placing it on the table.

“hold up.” Sans offered his fire magic drink to her, where Alphys eyes lit up with understanding and she took the drink from him, pouring in a bit of it into her dry ice magic drink and swirling it with the straw.

“not a big fan of the cold, these two.” Sans explained as the humans looked at him confused.

“Cold sucks!” Undyne cried out, watching Alphys taking tentative sips of her mixed magic drink, “I get why you two skinless guys were designated to live there, but I’ll never understand how everyone else managed!”

“IT WASN’T SO BAD UNDYNE, YOU LIKED THE TIME YOU WERE LIVING THERE BETWEEN YOUR HOUSE GETTING BURNED AND REBUILT OVER AGAIN.” Papyrus pointed out.

She reached across and slapped his knee, grinning, “Only because of you, you goofball!” she narrowed her eyes at Sans, “I tolerate you and those puns of yours.”

Sans open his mouth, by Unydne leaned towards him quickly, “And stars help you if I EVER have to hear another bone or fish pun from you!”

“………well, if i don’t say something now, it’ll seem fishy.”

“That’s it!”

Before Undyne could get far, Alphys head blazed into what could only be described as cold fire, her head covered in blue flames that emitted an occasional snowflake. Every breath she breathed out was fogged, and when she coughed, a puff of blue flames came out too.

“That has got to be the coolest thing ever!” Vic cried, while Pete was picking up other drinks, looking at them thoughtfully.

“You can combine drinks?” he asked, looking around and still hovering.

“yeah, but don’t get too creative,” Sans warned, relaxing at Undyne sat back down, nuzzling her blushing girlfriend, “you can create a really weird combo, and stars help you if you give a potent drink the extra magic kick of some of the softer stuff.”

“What’s a potent drink?” Matt asked.

Sans grin got mischief, “you wanna know?”

“……….Well, if I don’t say yes now, it’ll seem fishy.”

Undyne snapped to look at him, flashing a menacing grin, “Oh human, you’ve just done fucked up!”

Matt chuckled, sitting up proudly, “Bring it on! I ain't afraid of no drink!”

“Oh, I’m picking your drink right now!” Undyne reached over and grabbed the bubbling drink from his hand, before sitting back, “But first, Alphys was going to tell us about herself.”

“Not-not much to say re-really.” Alphys tail curled around her clawed legs as she continued to breath ice fire, “I’m just the head scientist for the King and Queen an-and oversee magical development at this facility I work out.”

“Nonsense!” Undyne beamed, looking around the table proudly, “She's been responsible for so many and amazing new developments, not to mention helping build up our races relationship by working with the brightest humans! You know, the ones who are smart enough to see beyond her beautiful scales.”

Alphys was blushing furiously, covering her face with her claws.

After kissing her forehead and chuckling affectionly when Alphys blushed further, Undyne turned her slitted eye on Matt, “Okay pal, hand out.”

Matt met her grin with his own, but his smile did fall when he looked down at the hot pink drink she handed him that had what appeared to be tentacles flopping over the edges, moving and swaying on their own.

“Oh god, why did I get the hentai drink?”

Alphys chocked on her drink she had taken at the worse time as Undyne roared in laughter, clutching at her sides. As Alphys blushed furiously yet again and tried to wipe herself down, Undyne beamed, “Nah, ‘fun’ drinks like those only exist in ‘special’ places.” She leaned forward, smirking, “Of course, if you’re too much of a whimp, you-“

Matt chugged the drink whole, slamming the now empty glass down on the table, grinning back over at her.

Undyne laughed, “I like you human! You’ve got guts!”

“Or you’re an idiot.” Vic scolded as Y/n looked on in concern and apprehension, “Seriously Matt, tell me you know that that drink was specifically picked to mess with you?”

“Of course I know that.” He shrugged, leaning back in his chair, “But I trust her enough to know it won’t be too horrible.”

“Hey Matt?” Y/n pointed at him

He looked down at himself, and gave an alarm of shocked and disgust as he saw that every limb had turned into tentacles. The weird part was, as he flayed about, what they had mistaken to be just the four tentacles replacing his arms and legs, separated into several, smaller tentacles.

“Gah!” he cried out, shaking his now boneless arms, “I’m all tentacles!”

“All?” Pete asked, with a mischievous grin and twinkle in his eyes.

Matt blushed hard, crossing his legs, “Well-well, I haven’t checked ALL of me yet, have I?”

The whole table snickered like idiots, as Matt folded his arms, trying to pull off nonchalant and composed, but really came across as pouting.

“Okay, okay! So ignoring that Undyne totally got me and I don’t like this drink at all,” Matt pointed to Y/n, or rather tried to, as the tentacles seem to have a mind of their own towards the tip, so he and everyone became distracted as they slipped and slid over each other like a bunch of earthworms.

“Um, Matt?” Vic coughed after a while.

He shook himself, quickly pulling in his hand, only to shiver violently.

“Oh god, they’re moving under my arm pits!”

“so i believe that’s a ‘skip’ for matt and a magic cancelling drink as well.” Sans said, moving towards the table.

“Hold up!” Matt leaned back, placing his independent moving arms on his armchair’s rests, “I’m good. I’ve got this.”

“you sure buddy?”

He nodded, before placing a ‘hand’ to his chest, “So, I’m Matt, the now hentai man,” Alphys and Undyne giggled like school girls on their couch, “and I’ve know Y/n, and by extension Vic, for a number of years, right Y/n?”

She nodded with a smile, “Yeah, I hadn’t been in the shop long when we, um, meet.”

“No need to sugar coat it Y/n.” He met everyone's question glance, grinning, “Y/n helped me get over a really bad break up one night…when I was trying to drink myself into a stupor.”

Everyone's mood noticeable lowered, and Matt laughed, “Not exactly great party conversation, I know, but it’s how we met.” He smiled fondly at her, and she looked away, remembering the night, “So, there I was, sobbing and wishing I could just die, drinking every bottle I had stashed away in the shop for when we celebrate Christmas, birthdays, so on, when Y/n comes in through the door I forgot to lock. I don’t remember much, but I do remember being really angry at her and calling her all sort of horrible things, and you know what she did? She-she dragged my ungrateful butt into her shop, carrying me into her apartment and stayed with me the whole night, watching me throw up into a porcelain throne and sobbing my little-broken heart out. Me, the stranger next door, and there she was, wiping my sick, rubbing my back and telling me it was going to be okay!”

Matt laughed in disbelief, before grinning over at Vic, “Can’t say her sister was glad to meet me when she found out that story, but we worked it out in the end.”

Vic hugged her side, “Y/n always does the right thing, but neither she and I have that much experience dealing with drunk, sad people. I was worried about what you might have done to her and worried how willing she just helped you like that, but I guess I can’t complain about the end results.”

“You mean about how Y/n and I became fast friends after that and you were happy to see me doing my part to get her out of her shop more often?”

“Always a plus.” Vic smiled.

Y/n, meanwhile, was still thinking back on that night.

Hearing the ragging sobs had woken her from her sleep and she was still nervous back then, scared of being alone and fearing getting robbed. Hearing the sounds coming from next door, she had snuck over, intending to find out if it was some sort of burglary. Seeing Matt, so distraught and destroying his own coffee shop broke her heart, and she found herself needed to do something, anything to help. As she had explained to both Vic and Matt later, it wasn’t like she could have just left him there.

Papyrus threw his arms around her, the beginnings of tears in his eyes, “THAT WAS SO NICE OF YOU Y/N!”

“It-it wasn’t that much. I-I mainly just watched to make sure he was sick into the toilet and not the floor.”

“What about the day after where you came by with a good book about time travel and a talking beetle?” Matt pointed out, smiling, “I still have it, you know.”

She shrugged, “I just thought you could do with a good book. I-I know that a good book has always helped me get throw hard times.”

Matt, Vic and Papyrus were looking at her with so much affection, her head quickly dropped to hide her blush.

Chuckling, Matt turned to Papyrus, “Now, I know how you two meet from Y/n’s words, but I’m dying to hear it from you.”

“And I just found out about you earlier today, so I want to know everything about you.” Vic added.

Papyrus sat up taller, “OF COURSE! I AM, AFTER ALL THE GREATEST, MOST INTERESTING MONSTER THAT HAS EVER LIVED!” He held up his glass thoughtfully, swirling in sophisticatedly, “IT ALL STARTED WHEN I WAS BORN-“

“sumerise paps.”

Papyrus huffed and looked away from his brother and back at Vic, “WELL, SANS IS MY OLDER BROTHER-“

“and he’s telling you to take a drink.”

“STOP INTERRUPTING MY MARVELLOUS TALE! I’M TRYING TO WEAVE INTRIGUE AND AWE HERE!”

“Less talky, more drinky.” Undyne agreed.

Rolling his eyes, Papyrus threw his head back and swallowed his clear magical drink whole.

“THERE, NOW AS I WAS SAYING, SANS AND I ARE BROTHERS, BUT I’M THE MORE HANDSOME BROTHER, IF I DO SAY MYSELF-~“

Papyrus’s voice was changing, but where Pete’s got higher, Papyrus was apparently singing every word he said, going on indifferent to the fact. If anything, he began to move his arms and body along with the epic tale he sang about he raise to glory.

“~-I ROSE UP THE RANKS OF GUARD IN TRAINING, MASTERED THE ARTS OF BOTH COOKING AND PUZZLES THAT NO MONSTER BEFORE ME HAS EVER ACCOMPLISHED! I BEFRIEND THE HUMAN, FRISK, AND SO BUILT THE FOUNDATION OF TRUST BETWEEN MONSTERS AND HUMANS! I WAS THERE AT THE GREAT BATTLE OF THE BARRIER SHATTERING (EVEN IF THE DETAILS ARE A BIT FUZZY), GLADLY ACCEPTED AND THEN RESIGNED FROM MY POST OF MONSTER MASCOT AND PURSED MY HEART’S WISHES TO MASTER HUMAN COOKING!~”

He threw his arms around her, swaying with the tune he alone could hear as he continued, “~THEN I MEET A WONDERFUL HUMAN WHO HELPED SPARE ME THE HUMILIATION FROM A SCOUNDREL, MEETING HER AGAIN LATER IN THE SAME PLACE, LIKE PRE-DESTINED FATE, AND TOGETHER WE HAVE BEEN EVER SINCE! WE FAST BECAME BEST FRIENDS AND WE ARE WRITING THE GREATEST BOOK THAT HAS EVER BEEN WRITTEN THAT WE’LL PROBABLY GET THOSE HUMAN NOBEL PEACE PRIZE FOR EXCELLENCE, HANDSOMENESS AND ALL AROUND AMAZINGNESS!~”

Y/n had long since buried her face in her one available hand that wasn’t holding her magical drink, beaming in delight at Papyrus praise and sincere boasting about his good fortune.

Like she wasn’t the lucky one.

“great song paps.” Sans gestured to Y/n, “so, what’s song are you going to sing?”

“If this drink makes me sing, I’ll pass and take that dragon one.” She was still eyeing Undyne’s very cool wings and tail, even if they were fading by now.

She grinned, looking quickly at Y/n’s drink, “Nah, you’re fine with that one.” She thumbed over at Matt, who was fighting the tentacles trying to sneak under his clothes and were probe every hole his face had, “That’s got to be about the worst drink here, but I guess it comes down to perspective.”

“~I THINK YOU’LL LIKE THIS ONE, Y/N!~” Papyrus continued to sing.

Trusting him, Y/n looked down at her drink that looked like liquid galaxies. She had to admit, after seeing the liquid fire turn Sans’s skull alight with flames, she had worried about her getting turned into a black hole….or maybe that character she had seen off a cartoon show once.

Taking a tentative sip, she was pleasantly surprised by the flavour; it was like a combination of fruit flavours, but where every flavour hit her tongue separately and burst on contact.

“Y/n! Your hair!” Vic cried, reaching out to pat it.

“What’s wrong??” she asked, imagine any horrible things…. “Oh my god, it’s turned into a black hole! I knew it!”

Laughing, Vic pulled out her phone and flipped the camera, passing it to her.

Taking it, Y/n could see that her hair was floating, defying gravity. The strangest part was how her hair looked like galaxy were in them, with her hair moving around to show that the galaxy wasn’t moving, just her hair showing something that was beyond sight. As she moved and her hair swayed, her hair revelled more of this galaxy.

“Oh, that’s so cool!” she returned the phone, looking back at the drink and seriously thinking about having another sip, so she did, giggling at the sensation.

“~I TOLD YOU IT WOULD BE FINE~” Papyrus sang happily, pressing himself to her side.

She grinned, playfully rolling her eyes as she looked back around at everyone else, “Well, I’m Y/n. I have a younger brother and Victoria here is my older sister. I left high school and went to university, but dropped out to pursue a dream of owning a bookshop, where I would eventually meet Matt, Undyne and Alphys….and Papyrus.”

“So how did you save Papyrus from a scoundrel?” Vic asked, nudging her.

She rolled her eyes for real with time, “Oh come on, I just stopped some asshole from charging more than was fair, and suddenly I’m Saint Y/n. It-it wasn’t that big of a deal.”

“~MAYBE TO YOU~” Papyrus cooed softly, beaming at her, “TO ME, IT WAS ONE OF MY HAPPIEST MEMORIES, BECAUSE IT WAS THE FIRST TIME I GOT TO SEE YOU!”

“See, that right there?” Y/n blushed, “That’s way too nice. That deserves Sainthood. You are way too nice for some random chick that just happened to be there.”

“~I’LL NEVER STOP PRAISING YOU~!” Papyrus vowed, posing valiantly.

Vic laughed, delighted as she watched them, before waving at everyone else, “And I’m Vic, the older sister. I’m happily married,” Matt awed playfully as Vic continued on, flipping him off as she kept talking, “with a beautiful daughter. We don’t live close, but we’re not that far, and I own my own photography business. Mostly wedding stuff, but it’s amazing how many clients want photos of monsters. A lot of advertising and modelling work, actually.”

“You forgot to take the drink.” Pete grinned, pointing to her pure black drink, “Think that counts as a party foul.”

“You’re right.”

Vic threw her head back and downed the whole drink, before slamming it back to the table.

“Hmm, kinda like coke, but not quite?”

“That sounds good.” Y/n looked over at Matt, “What did your drink taste like?”

“Shame.”

Everyone chuckled at that, till Vic gasped, “Woha!”

She was moving her hand back and forwards, and neon coloured echoes of her hand lingered in the air, a bit like a sparkler, only if the sparklers were strobe lights where the colours changed with each flash.

“It’s official; this place rules!” She giggled, moving both hands through the air and watching the path she left. 

Undyne jumped up, raising her fits into a fighting stance, “Okay, now that we all know each other, are we going to just sit here all night, or are we going to do something?!”

“DO SOMETHING~!!” Papyrus jumped up and quickly joined her, before looking at her expectantly, “Y/N! COME JOIN US!”

“Doing what?”

“We don’t know yet!” Undyne grinned, “That’s the point! We’re going off to look for something fun to do! Something to inspire the right mood!” She grinned mischievously, nudging a beaming Papyrus.

“THAT’S RIGHT! THE MOOD TO PAR-TAY!!~”

“Oh, I’m so in.” Vic grinned, getting quickly up.

She looked back at Y/n, “Want to come Y/n?”

She quickly shook her head, sipping her magic drink.

Matt shrugged, “I’m going to stay here till my legs form back.” He winked at Vic, “Let me know if you see something ‘interesting’, yeah?”

Vic winked back, beaming, before looking at everyone else, “Who else is coming?”

“I’m gonna check out the bar.” Pete grinned, his voice back to normal, his feet back on the floor.

“and i’m going with. see if i can’t snag a bottle of ketchup.” Sans added.

“I’ve got ten bucks that says you’ll get caught trying.”

Sans turned and gave Pete an almost a pitying look, “oh, you poor human. i can’t take your money like that.”

“Thirty says you can’t do it shirtless.”

“Oh, I’ll add thirty to that.” Matt grinned.

Sans looked between the two men, covering himself in mocking modesty, “you two just want to see me out of my shirt, you horny, horny humans.”

“My first instinct is to deny that, but I’ll be honest Sans, between watching you and the boy eating, I’d be lying if I didn’t just want to see where the food went.”

Y/n found herself nodding, before she blushed and pretended she was just nodding to the beat.

Matt grinned slyly at her, looking back over at Pete and Sans, “Hey Pete, think we should add he has to finish the rest of the fire drink of his first?”

“add as many conditions you want; i’ll gladly take your money.” Sans bent and grabbed his fire drink, finishing it as his flame hair burned brighter. With the empty glass, he placed it on the table, grinning between the two humans, “oh, and i’m thinking you two can keep your money and instead sing  karaoke song without your shirts on.”

“Okay, now this is getting ridiculous.” Vic sighed, exasperated as Matt and Pete looked thoughtfully at each other, before nodding.

“Deal.” The guys shook hands, and Pete and Sans were the first to head to the railings, raising their hands before getting lowered to the ground.

“How about you babe?” Undyne asked Alphys.

Alphys looked away from Y/n thoughtfully, before shaking her head quickly, “I-um, I’d like to stay here and get to know Y/n…..a bit more.”

“Ahhhhh, gotcha!” Undyne winked at her as Vic snickered and Papyrus beamed.

“DON’T WORRY Y/N, THE MOMENT I FIND SOMETHING INTERESTING, I’LL COME RIGHT BACK FOR YOU~!”

“You don’t have to.” She mumbled, rather hoping she could spend the night here, “You go and have fun.”

Papyrus looked like he was going to say something, but Vic came up next to him, grinning, “Come on, I’m sure if we find something interesting, y/n will want to see it.”

“…..YEAH! OKAY.”

He grabbed both women's’ hands and run over to the balcony, lifting both of their wrists, while Undyne whooped and Vic shrieked as they all disappeared from sight, over the railings.

“So-so Y/n, um….can I tell you about this story I was reading.” Alphys asked, moving shyly over to her couch.

“Oh?....um, sure, okay.”

She smiled softly, playing with her tail, “So, it’s about this girl and guy who like each other but they don’t know it yet. Th-they think their just friends and neither of them realise that they're actually in love. The weird part is that if they just realised it sooner, they could have been even happier sooner…….does, does that remind you of anyone or anything?”

Matt snickered as Y/n thought about it.

“....No, but it’s strange that neither one of them know that they’re in love. Most romance stories, it’s common to have one of them be clueless, but the other one is madly in love but afraid that their affections wouldn't be returned.”

“But-but isn’t that sad? That they did know?” Alphys blushed, twisting her tail, “What-what would you do to make them realise that they were really in love?”

“Hmmm, well, in Host Club, there’s this part where the guy has to get his reality of his relationship with her broken so he can accept it for what it really is, while she needed something really big and dramatic to make her feel that love emotion really strongly. It was sort of like she needed the shock to shake out of her obliviousness.”

“…….You’ve read Host Club?”

Y/n grinned, before singing, “~Kiss, kiss for love!~”

Alphys gapped at her, before squealing, reaching over and grasping Y/n shoulders excitedly, “Oh my Stars! How amazing was the anime??”

“Perfect! I really like the English dubbing in that series, and don’t get me started on who my favourite is!”

“Tell me, tell me!”

Matt chuckled, moving to push himself up from the chair, his legs still not quite as they should be, “Well, I can see that I have no hope in keeping up with this.” He thumbed over at the Karaoke machine, “I’m going to go and check and, oh why am I talking right now?”

Chuckling he moved gingerly over to the machine, as Y/n and Alphys quickly bounded on all the shoujo manga and anime they knew and liked.

~*~

As Y/n and Alphys gushed over their newfound common interests, Vic approached Papyrus, who was eyeing the sign on the DJ booth.

“OOH! NAPSBLOOK PERFORMS HERE! I HEARD ABOUT THIS, BUT I NEVER REALISED HE PLAYED FOR JUST ONE HOUR….AH, AND WE HAVEN’T MISSED IT YET! GOOD!” He turned and beamed at two women, “WE SHOULD GO TELL THE OTHERS!”

“Hey Papyrus? Can I talk to you real quick?” Vic yelled over the music of the main dance floor.

“AREN’T WE ALREADY DOING THAT?”

Undyne snickered at Vic sighed, before conceding, “Okay, fair point, but I wanted to ask you if you liked my sister?”

“OF COURSE I LIKE Y/N!” Papyrus practical sang, despite the effects of his drink having already worn off.

Vic beamed, “Great! Because I’m pretty sure she likes you too.”

“I KNOW SHE LIKES ME.”

Vic and Undyne were both shocked to hear this, but Vic recovered first, “Well-well that’s great!” She leaned in, “What are you going to do about it?”

He looked confused, “WHAT AM I SUPPOSE TO DO WITH WHAT?”

“Look, I know my sister; if you don’t take the first step, nothing happens between you two. Understand?”

“I THINK I UNDERSTAND.” Papyrus said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, “YOU’RE SAYING THAT IF I DON’T LEAD, IF I DON’T MAKE THE FIRST MOVE, THEN Y/N WON’T DANCE TONIGHT. YOU’RE TRYING TO TELL ME THAT I NEED TO PHYSICALLY GUIDE HER ONTO THE DANCE FLOOR!”

“That’s not at all-“

Undyne threw her head back, laughing, “You’re such a goofball! Come here!!”

She grabbed Papyrus by his shirt and pulled him in, quickly pinning his head under her armpit as she noogied him.

Vic could only gap at the complaining skeleton, at a loss for words.

“welcome to the club.”

Feeling someone patting her back, she turned and saw Sans now shirtless, sipping at what could only be described as a ketchup bottle.

“This would be the part where I asked what happened to you, but I’m still recovering.” She rubbed her eyes, exasperated briefly, before crying out, “Our siblings are idiots!”

Sans laughed, patting her on the shoulder as he smiled fondly at his brother now wrestling with Undyne off to the side of the dance floor, “nah, you’re just going about this too directly. let me try something.”

Vic dropped her hand as she followed Sans over to Papyrus and Undyne. Seeing them approach, Undyne dropped Papyrus from the headlock she had him, to look Sans up and down.

“Why the hell is your shirt -oh, the stupid bet.” She cocked out her hip and resting her hands, “Tell me you at least won?”

Sans grinned, waving the bottle in the air.

“Good! Now Matt and Pete get to sing karaoke shirtless, and maybe that’ll ease Alphys into joining in.”

“I HOPE THE SAME WORKS FOR Y/N!” Papyrus sighed, casting a longing look back up to their area.

“i actually came to find you guys for that reason. figured i have a bet to collect and we have some time to kill before napsblook gets here.” He grinned at the two monsters, “what do we say? some good old karaoke and a few more drinks!”

“Hell yes!”

Undyne was already running back to their area, barrelling through the dancing crowd. Papyrus made to follow (nibbling jumping and dodging around people rather than brute forcing his way like Undyne), when Sans called out, “hey bro, can you help me with something?”

“UM, SURE?”

He came quickly back, falling to walk on Sans another side as Vic tagged along, the group going around the dancing crowd, rather than through it.

“WHAT’S WRONG BROTHER?”

“i’ve been feeling strange for a long time, and i was wondering if you could tell me what’s up.”

“ARE YOU OKAY?!” Papyrus cried, leaning in and looking him over.

Sans held up his hands, “easy paps. nothing bad, just strange emotions and behaviour i’m noticing. i'm hoping you have some advice?”

Papyrus posed as they walked, “WHY OF COURSE! I AM AN EXPERT IN ALL MANNER OF THINGS!”

Sans grinned happily, before listing off, “see, i’ve been thinking about this person non-stop. things like wondering what they’re doing, what they’re thinking about and just looking forward to seeing them next. weird part is how, every time i see someone talking to them and it’s not me, i get so jealous."

Papyrus had been listening with his hands over his mouth, his eyes wobbling. When Sans was done, he cried out, “OH SANS!” and pulled the shorter skeleton into a hug, “YOU’RE IN LOVE!!”

“you think so?” Sans asked, winking at a smiling Vic.

“NO DOUBT!” Papyrus pulled him away, crying urgently, “YOU MUST CONFESS YOUR LOVE TO THIS PERSON, AT ONCE!”

“but what if she doesn’t like me?”

He waggled his finger in front of Sans’s face, “THAT DOESN’T MATTER! YOU MUST BE HONEST WITH HOW YOU FEEL, AND I KNOW YOU’RE IN LOVE! YOU MUST LET HER KNOW BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE! WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF SOMEONE BET YOU TO HER?! YOU’D BE SAD FOR A REALLY LONG TIME! DON’T WORRY ABOUT REJECTION SANS, BECAUSE THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE! I KNOW ANYONE WOULD BE LUCKY TO HOLD YOUR AFFECTIONS!” His eyes softened, “I KNOW I AM.”

Sans looked away, a small, genuinely happy smile on his skull, “thanks paps.” He looked back, beaming, “okay, i’m going to go and tell her right now.”

Sans lead the group back to the railing, where, once they were all lifted onto their private area, he made for a beeline to Y/n, who was sitting by herself as Alphys and Undyne argued about songs and Pete and Matt were trying to out-confidence each other without their shirts on, all preparing to sing at the karaoke machine. All the rest of the guard had left to mingle with everyone below, leaving the whole areas just theirs now.

“hey y/n.”

Y/n looked away from the sight of the impending karaoke session to watch in surprise as Sans dropped himself into the seat next to her, beaming at her.

“Oh, hi Sans. What did you get up to?” She thumbed towards Pete and Matt, “I know you’ve won your bet…and that you’re not obligated to keep your shirt off.”

He shrugged, taking another sip from his bottle, “eh, just performing my brotherly duties.”

“Sounds like something my sister would say.” Y/n said, looking past him to see Papyrus and her sister still over by the rails. While Vic looked thoughtful, it was Papyrus's expression that really confused her.

“What’s wrong with Papyrus?” she asked, turning to look back at Sans.

He chuckled, reaching out for her hand and patting it, looking up at her, “mind describing what he looks like to me?”

“Um…He looks kind of surprised? Shocked really, maybe a little angry and sad too?”

Sans closed his eyes and hummed, “good.” He opened them, quickly ruffling her hair, “you’re a good kid. look after him, okay?”

“What?”

He didn’t respond beyond winking and pushing himself back up, walking towards his brother as he put his shirt back on.

Before she had much of a chance to pounder yet another mystery, the area dimmed as the karaoke came into life, lights, smoke and a huge, wall-sized screen became active behind a Matt on stage, shirtless and holding a mic.

He cleared his voice, testing the speakers, "Testing, one two. Testing, one two. Before the song starts, I'd like to say 'fuck you good buddy' to the grinning cheater man for the welcoming sign that was on my shirt, and to reassure him that justice will be coming his way."

"welcome to try matty patty." Sans snickered, done talking to Papyrus, who was now looking over in her direction.

An all too familiar tune started up.

“Ignoring that, this one goes out to a certain Disney Princess at heart I know.”

“Oh no!” She buried her face in her hands as Matt began to sing what he knew was one of her favourite Disney songs.

_“[~ I am a question to the world, not an answer to be heard, or a moment that's held in your arms. ~](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9Hrq9dzNSs)”_

“Y/N?”

She looked quickly up to see Papyrus looking down at her, everyone else already moving towards Matt with their drinks. Undyne and Vic were already cheering Matt, who couldn’t help himself but dance as he sung.

Papyrus sat down next to her, looking conflicted and apparently struggling to say something.

“Everything okay Papyrus?” she asked, concerned.

He closed his mouth, looking between her and Matt singing.

“….YOU LIKE THIS SONG?”

“…a little.” She admitted.

And by a little, she meant she was currently swaying, tapping the beat on her empty galaxy drink. Her hair had lost the really cool visual effect and defying gravity, but it was super cool how her hair still had a shimmer, glittering effect from all the stars.

Papyrus seemed to consider that, watching her carefully, before he reached across, holding her hands softly in his.

“Papyrus?”

He beamed, _“~ AND WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'D UNDERSTAND, I'M A BOY NO, I'M A MAN, YOU CAN'T TAKE ME AND THROW ME AWAY._ ~”

“You know this song??”

He winked, “~ _AND HOW CAN YOU LEARN WHAT'S NEVER SHOWN, YEAH YOU STAND HERE ON YOUR OWN. THEY DON'T KNOW ME, CAUSE I'M NOT HERE.~”_

At the last line, he pulled her up, into his arms as he held her, hugging her tightly to him as he sang, twirled, dipped and danced.

_“~ AND I WANT A MOMENT TO BE REAL. WANNA TOUCH THINGS I DON'T FEEL. WANT TO HOLD ON AND FEEL I BELONG. ~ AND HOW CAN THE WORLD WANT ME TO CHANGE? THEY'RE THE ONES THAT STAY THE SAME. THEY DON'T KNOW ME, CAUSE I'M NOT HERE. ~”_

“Papyrus!”

Hearing her angrily snap at him was enough for him to stop twirling instantly, placing her back on the ground.

“SORRY!” he blurted, taking a couple of steps back.

Y/n was still brushing herself down, a distraction from the bright red blush on her cheeks, thoroughly embarrassed. The song kept singing on as she looked over at Papyrus, who looked so sad, so regretful.

Sighing, she took a deep breath, looking firmly at the ground as she fought hard against everything inside her telling her this would make her look stupid, but caring more about making him look happy again.

 _“~ And I wanna tell you who I am. ~”_ She looked shyly up to see Papyrus staring at her, “ _~ Can you help me be a man? They can't break me, as long as I know who I am.~”_

With a hand gesture and walking closer to him, she beamed, encouraging him to sing with her. He looked at her with such joyous relief that it seemed to her that his eye lights got brighter.

Together, they sung with the chores.

_“~ And I want a moment to be real. Wanna touch things I don't feel. Want to hold on and feel I belong.~ And how can the world want me to change? They're the ones that stay the same, they can't see me, but I'm still here. ~”_

Y/n and Papyrus leaned in close towards the other, singing to each other alone.

_“~ They can't tell me who to be, cause I'm not what they see. Yeah, the world is still sleeping while I keep on dreaming for me. ~And their words are just whispers and lies that I'll never believeeee!~ ”_

They both flung their heads back, their arms open wide, signing at the top of their lungs at that last line. When it ended, Papyrus opened his arms wide to her, and Y/n ran to him, both grinning as he lifted her up and twirled them both around in circles, both still singing and lost in their own world.

_“~ And I want a moment to be real, wanna touch things I don't feel, want to hold on and feel I belong. ~And how can they say I'll never change? They're the ones that stay the same. I'm the one now, cause I'm still here. ~I'm the one, cause I'm still here, I'm still here. I'm still here. I'm still here. ~”_

As the song came to an end, Papyrus slowed, lowering her to the ground. It ended with his arms around her waist, her staring up into his expression, both lost in the other’s eyes. She could only stare back as he lowered his head, those eyes of his getting closer, closer.

Papyrus pressed his teeth to her lips, whispered "MWHA", before moving back, watching her reaction intently.

Y/n's expression didn't change, but her blush was slow to build up as her mind slowly comprehend what just happened. She didn’t know how long she just stood there like that, or how much longer she would have gone on, but the sound of the karaoke machine announcing the next song and Matt’s cursing made both Y/n and Papyrus look over to see everyone else just staring at them, a smile on each other their faces.

Mortified at the idea that they had seen her sing, dance and then getting kissed (I-he-what just happened???), Y/n quickly turned away, hurrying to the furthest side away from everyone.

“Y/N, WAIT!”

She sat behind the booth at a cluster of empty chairs around a table at the furthest corner, sliding down the back of the booth till she sat on the floor, burying her face into her knees.

The sound of highly polished suave shoes alerted her on who was standing in front of her, crouching low to attempt to look at her face.

"Y/N, PLEASE! I'M-I'M SORRY! I SHOULD HAVE NEVER KISSED YOU!"

She groaned, burying her face and blush deeper into her hands.

"PLEASE DON'T BE SAD! I PROMISE, IT'LL NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN!"

Her body locked up as her mind shut down, incapable of doing anything but remaining curled up on the floor like this.

"DON'T- DON'T BE SAD Y/N. PLEASE."

"Papyrus?"

The sound of her sister's voice barely penetrated Y/n's brain as she just passively listened to the conversation near her, unable to do more than just listen.

"Mind if I talk to my sister? Privately?"

"I DIDN'T MEAN TO- I-I WAS JUST-!"

"It's okay Papyrus! I promise, every thing's fine. Just, give us some space? I think I can see Sans trying to get your attention."

"...Okay."

She had never heard Papyrus sound so....small.

After he walked away, she could feel and hear her sister sliding to the ground next to her, sighing.

"....How are you handling this Y/n?"

She groaned into her hands, feeling so flustered and mortified.

Vic chuckled, "That's what I thought."

There was another pause as both of them listened to the karaoke play its next song with what sounded like Alphys and Undyne singing.

"....Papyrus thinks he hurt you." Her sister said, idly.

Y/n threw her head up, "But he hasn't! I just wasn't-wasn't expecting that! Then I realized everyone had seen that, not to mention that I was singing and dancing, and-!"

She buried her head back into her knees.

Y/n felt a hand patting her back, rubbing her gently in small circles, "Shhh, I get it, I get it."

She laughed awkwardly, "I've grown up with you, you think I don't know what this is? That I haven't seen this play out so many times before? You do something you think everyone's going to judge you for, and you get embarrassed, disappearing if not physically, then mentally. I've lost count of all the times I've had to come and get you, or found out you've been hiding away for a long time."

She felt Vic nudge her side, "But what you've got to understand is that Papyrus is seeing all of this and he's thinking he done this to you."

"It's that's not true!"

"I know that, you know that. He, doesn't."

There was another long pause.

"Way I see it Y/n, you've got three options. Either hide out here or go home without talking to Papyrus and let him keep thinking that he's hurt you, or go and talk to him."

Y/n could feel her blush darken, her stomach twisting at the thought of such a confrontation.

"You-you said I had three options?" she said, looking out from her knees.

Vic was smiling softly over at her, throwing an arm around her shoulders, "Come back with me and enjoy the rest of your night. Not everything has to be a big speech, you know? Just come back and sit quietly with me for awhile while we watch Matt and this Pete guy make fools of themselves, shitless. A quick, 'I'm fine' to Papyrus, don't panic, and you're done."

"....That sounds too easy." She mumbled.

Vic laughed, "It only sounds easy because you over complicate things Y/n! Trust me, Papyrus just wants to see you happy. We all do. We were so happy to see you laughing and enjoying yourself Y/n, you hardly ever relax around people and it was nice to see you just smiling."

"But-but-....what do I do about Papyrus kiss-" She covered her eyes, blushing again.

Vic chuckled softly, "Well, that's up to you. How do you feel about it?"

"....Confused."

"Still?"

She looked over at Vic, "What do you mean 'still'??"

She shrugged, and ignored the question, "You don't have to do anything Y/n. Ignore it, talk to him later if you want. Point is, you can do whatever you want."

When Y/n didn't respond, she sister added, sadly, "I'll take you home if you want. That's an option too."

"I-I-"

Normally she would have jumped all over that offer, but for the first time, she was finding the idea of leaving....distasteful. She didn't want to go home. She-she had been having a great time, surprisingly.

Hearing her hesitate, her sister pushed on as she sulked playfully, "Come on, don't go. I was hoping you and I could find out what the rest of the drinks do. I know Sans said not to, but can you imagine if we combined all the drinks into one?"

".......I think that would be amazing to see, IF you could convince Matt to drink it."

Vic beamed, standing up and offering a hand to Y/n, which she took, allowing herself to be pulled up onto her feet.

Vic wrapped her arm around her waist, guiding her back to the others, leaving Y/n to watch the floor pass under her feet, "Now just remember, deep breathes, and remember that I'm here. I can keep the heat off you, but you need to at least tell people you're okay." She hugged her tightly, "Okay?"

"...Okay."

"That's what I wanted to hear."

Y/n was guided back over to their table as Papyrus came rushing over, Sans close behind.

"Y/N! I'M-"

"Papyrus, stop!"

He threw his hands over his mouth, his eyes locked onto Y/n bowed head.

Vic hugged her again, before continuing, "Everything's fine, I promise. We just needed a break for a quick sec. Y/n wanted to come back, she's feeling better now, and now we both just want to watch Matt and Pete sing."

"not the only ones." Sans looked meaningfully at Vic, "mind if we join you two?"

"Umm?" Vic looked over at Y/n, who blushed and looked away, "...Sssure okay." She looked back at them, grinning, "On the condition you help us woot Matt and partake in another round of 'Oh god, what's happening to me!?'"

Sans chuckled, looking over at his thoroughly worried brother, "think we can manage that, right bro?"

"IS Y/N OKAY?" He asked, quietly.

Everyone would have waited for her answer till the end of time if it had not been for Vic hugging her side, rubbing comfortingly on the hand she hadn't realised she had grabbed for support.

"I-I'm fine." She mumbled.

"ARE YOU SURE?" he insisted.

She nodded, finding looking up hard to do.

"give her some space paps." Sans whispered softly to him.

Vic agreed, "She's fine Papyrus, promise. Let's get settled in and enjoy the horrible, horrible show."

"I heard that." Matt said, talking into the mic that Alphys passed him as Undyne was chesting up to a shirtless Pete.

"Good!" Vic called out.

"take it off." Sans playfully called out.

Matt grinned cheekily, not capable of feeling shame as his hands threatened to unzip his pants, "Time to make my mum proud."

"What are you doing??" Pete cried out, blushing as he quickly turned away.

There was stunned silence.

"Oh my god, Pete, are you blushing??" Matt turned to stare at him.

"You-you were going to take your pants off!" he cried out, defensively.

"big buff pete get's flustered." Sans grinned, nudging Papyrus, who sat with him instead of next to Y/n, "you'll have to remember that the next time he threatens you with that 'kiss' story paps."

"Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, tonight's entertainment." Matt called out with his microphone, gesturing to Pete.

Pete glared playfully at him as Alphys and Undyne came back to join them, giggling and cuddling each other, "Oh, I'll show you flustering."

The song started, and Pete immediately took the front centre stage, signing specifically at Matt.

"~ _Let's get down to business to defeat, the Huns._ ~"

~*~

Y/n quickly eased back into how things were before (even if she turned scarlet if her eyes so much as meet Papyrus's, considering how often he kept looking over at her). Between everyone else singing but her and Papyrus, the new drinks, the cool combinations and everyone's blood alcohol level getting steadily higher, she had almost forgotten that she had been anything but side-splitting laughing the whole night.

Through a round of yet another burst of uproarious laughter from the group around the table, a speaker came on over the dance floor, "Hi, my name is Napsblook, and not that you should care about that, but I'm here to try and play some songs I guess. They're not that good-"

"You're amazing!" cheered the whole building, including all the monsters in Y/n's group.

"What was that?" Vic asked

"metatton's club's policy; every time napsblook says something self-deprecating, the whole club has to call that out."

Naspblook's voice continued, "I'm not amazing. I-I don't know why people bother-"

"You're amazing!" cheered the whole club, including the humans now.

"*Sigh,* I guess I'll get started then."

As the club's music below switched into something more intense and catchy, Undyne jumped up, "Oh my stars, Napsblook is finally here! Come on everyone, let's get physical!!"

Y/n didn't like how she wiggled her eyebrows saying that, looking between her and Papyrus.

"Y/n, you can stay here if you want." Vic offered as everyone moved to get up and follow Undyne, who had just lept down rather than use her bracelet, "I can stay with you, if you'd like?"

"No, it's fine." She replied, watching Papyrus getting dragged away by Sans, before watching the two disappear over the railings, "You should go have fun."

"You sure?"

"Positive."

Vic looked at her watch, "Since Napsblook is only here for an hour and it is getting pretty late, wanna make it a plan to call it a night when I get back?"

"Sure."

Vic hugged her, before letting go, walking over to the railing and smiling fondly at her as she was lowered to the ground level.

Deciding she much rather watch her friends dance than stare at their empty drinks, Y/n made her way over to the railing, looking down at the dancing crowd.

The DJ booth now had what looked like a silver/blue metal robot standing behind it, the whole booth now alive with lights and music. The dance floor was lit up, with interactive and various pattens that were impressive to see, especially from this angle. Not that she could see much, with everyone in the club apparently deciding to be on the dance floor at once. She struggled to spot the people she knew but grew more alarmed when a certain boisterous skeleton remained unaccounted for.

Quickly, she looked around her, and saw, just in time, Papyrus coming up from the far side on their private section.

"Y/N." He called out, approaching her.

"P-Papyrus." She said, leaning against the railings.

He stopped a short distance from her, his expression falling, "SO YOU ARE AFRAID OF ME."

"No!" she quickly looked away, "I-I just get easily flustered Papyrus....you know that."

"I-I HAD FORGOTTEN YOU DON'T LIKE CROWD OR MEETING LOTS OF PEOPLE."

Something in his voice made her look up, watching as a silent tear trickled down his face, "I'M SUCH A SELFISH PERSON."

"No, you're not." She moved quickly to him, smiling softly, "You're supportive, caring, and you make being with you the best moments of my life!"

"I-I SHOULDN'T HAVE KISSED YOU." He mumbled, looking away, "I-I DON'T KNOW WHY I COULDN'T CONTROL MYSELF....I'M SORRY Y/N."

She stopped in front of him, "....Why did you kiss me?"

He met her eyes.

"BECAUSE I'M IN LOVE YOU Y/N. I-I THINK I'VE LOVED YOU FOR A REALLY LONG TIME NOW."

Tears gathered in her eyes, and she tried wiping them away, only for more to tears to form as she mumbled to herself, "No one can love me. I'm such an awkward, anti-social weirdo, in my stupid clothes. I always mess everything up, and I panic easily-"

He hugged her, stilling her babbled as he held her firm, "YOU'RE NOT ANY OF THOSE THINGS TO ME! TO ME, YOU'RE WONDERFUL, CARING, BEAUTIFUL AND MY VERY BEST FRIEND I'VE EVER HAD! YOU MAKE MY WHOLE DAY BETTER EVERY TIME I SEE YOU AND ANY PLANS WE MAKE TO DO SOMETHING TOGETHER BECOME MY NEW FAVOURITE THING TO LOOK FORWARD TO! I LOVE SEEING YOU IN THE MORNING FOR OUR RUNS, I LOVE WORKING ON OUR BOOK AND HELPING YOU WITH YOUR LESSONS." He pulled back, holding her shoulders, "I LOVE YOU Y/N! I-I CAN'T BELIEVE IT'S TAKEN ME ALL THIS TIME, BUT MY SOUL IS SINGING FOR YOU, AND YOU ALONE RIGHT NOW! CAN'T YOU HEAR IT??"

"N-no." She mumbled, straining to hear anything but the throbbing music around them.

There was a moment of silence from both of them.

"WOULD-WOULD YOU PLEASE GO ON A DATE WITH ME?"

"You-you want to date me??" she looked up at him, baffled

The concept was absolutely foreign to her; when was the last time anyone had asked her??

Papyrus nodded, moving to claps both her hands in his, lifting them to his chest, "YOU DON'T HAVE TO SAY YES (I AM SO UNBELIEVABLY NERVOUS RIGHT NOW), BUT IF YOU DID SAY YES, I PROMISE TO MAKE IT THE GREATEST DATE THAT ANYONE HAS EVER BEEN DATED ON!"

Her eyes dropped to their clasped hands, and she could feel herself standing at a crossroad.

She didn't know how she felt about Papyrus; whatever it was, it was so big, confusing and mixed in with so much joy and anxiety that she might lose whatever she had with him. Dating....what if it didn't work? What if she couldn't love him back? What if he realised he was wrong, saw who she really was and changed her mind??

She felt tears gathering at the very idea of losing him. Of him not being in her life any more.

His hand squeezed her, "PLEASE, ALLOW ME THE CHANCE TO WIN OVER YOUR SOUL."

She, eventually nodded.

Gleefully, Papyrus picked her up and hugged her, spinning in circles as he cheered, "YOU SAID YES!! YOU SAID YES!!"

As Y/n hugged him back, his excitement drowning out her fears and doubts, she thought about how she couldn't be sure yet, and there were a lot of variables to consider, but the evidence was starting to point to one clear conclusion:

She might actually like Papyrus too.

 

Next Chapter is called: Dating Start!

 

**!!FanArt!!**

**Ink for** **One** -  **[So resigned! (The feels!!)](https://www.deviantart.com/inkforone/art/Hello-Victoria-753691801?ga_submit_new=10%3A1531157322)**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OH MY STARS!  
> I'm back and stuff happened at the wrong time that I knew would make me late, so I made the decision to take my time and deal with that first before worrying about this update cylce. I'm so sorry for the wall of silence and the many people concerned about me (greatly appreciate it guys *sob!*), but I'm back now, so things should settle down. I'm going to need a day or two to get back into the swing of things, but basically, I haven't been online since Monday last week.  
> Either way, I hope you enjoy this update!


	16. Dating Start!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All my stories got wiped out about two days before the update schedule and I was crushed! So I took some time off, did these updates as good as I could (Hard to write something twice and not feel like it was better the first time), and now I've got October to look forward to!   
> I've been planning something fun for a while!  
> Hope to see you all in October!!

Y/n was still wearing the bracelet from that night as the week ended and the day of her and Papyrus’s first date approached.

Papyrus had run from the club as soon as she was back on the ground, yelling over his shoulder that he would text her. What she should have expected was him texting her moments later, providing a running commentary of how he was running back home and making hurried calls as he went, telling her he had big plans, but of course, she couldn’t know about any of them till much later.

By the time everyone else had come back from dancing, they were more than a little confused about why she was so red face as she read her phone messages. Only Sans seemed to know, if his playful wink had been any indication.

Going home with Vic and Matt after that was even more awkward, but thankfully, both had left her alone, choosing to grin at each other at every red traffic light instead. She had to promise Vic that she would do a much better job on keeping her informed (“Just send me a text message whenever you think of me” she had said, pulling out of their hug), and all three of them had agreed that tonight had been a blast and that they should do it again sometime.

“It’s going hard to beat tonight, but we humans need to show the monsters what we do for fun.” Matt grinned.

Vic nudged him “And bring along Pete for a couple of laughs, eh?”

Matt rolled his eyes, even as he grinned.

The very next morning, Y/n’s phone had gone off to the tune of Papyrus calling her, asking her if she was going to go on their morning jog this morning? Blushing at the idea of seeing him so soon and feeling a twinge of a headache from last night’s drinking, she had declined, till Papyrus asked if tomorrow was better. When it became clear he fully intended to keep up their morning jogs, right up until their date, it hadn’t made much sense prolonging the inevitable.

In the end, she was glad she did; Papyrus had made that phone call for right outside her shop, jogging backwards and forwards as he waited. He was obviously excited to see her, if his inability to stand still for longer than three seconds was any indicator, and while they did jog to the beach and doing so proved just how much she had improved with all these morning jogs and his training regiments, she was no where near Papyrus’s boundless energy level. For her, she had been too shy and anxious to say much of anything, and judging by the way Papyrus noted loudly interesting shapes and objects as they jogged pass them, so was he, just in a different way.

The only thing that he had eventually asked her was if she was free this Saturday for a date, which she had furiously blushed as she quickly nodded. After that, nothing could remove that huge smile on his or stop him from explaining what he had planned in the broadest, grandest, and the vaguest sense that always saw him just stopping short of just outright stating what he was talking about. With everything he said, her fear that he was making something truly extraordinary and elaborate, something that would draw everyone’s eyes in from other cities around her, grew.

She hadn’t been able to bring herself to beg him to take it easy. To not make this a spectacular for other people.

Only later, did she think about asking him for a specific time.

As the days ticked down, Y/n’s anxiety grew along with his excitement, till the last they saw of each other was on Friday morning.

That had been yesterday.

“Why didn’t you just ask him what times he planned to come and get you?” Felix had asked at the end of a very long week and day for him.

Y/n stopped twirling her bracelet around her wrist to look at the exasperated cat monster, “I-I couldn’t!”

“Why not?”

“I just couldn’t, okay??”

Quickly, she walked over towards him, “Look, I’m so sorry-“

He raised a paw, “If you’re going to apologise this much, you should at least be doing something worth apologising for.”

She twisted her hands in front of her, “But I’ve been like this all week-“

“And you were like this for the club, and I’ll imagine you’ll be like this for everytime something new comes up. Honestly, you’re fine, but it does make me wonder how you managed before.”

“I-I didn’t have so much to worry about till after I met Papyrus!” She began pacing, “I had years of consistency, and suddenly, Boom! Now I’ve got all these feelings, and concerns, and worries, and stuff!”

Felix shrugged as his tail swept behind him, “That such a bad thing?”

Y/n stopped, turning to slowly look at him.

“….I’m….I’m not sure.”

He pushed himself away from the front counter, moving about to close for the day, “Well then, you should probably figure that out.”

“Have you ever been in love?” she asked, hoping to collaborate her feelings to someone who knew for sure.

Felix stuttered, fumbling with the closing sign as he turned quickly to look back at her, “Wh-wha?? No!” He turned just as quickly away, hurrying away to do something else, deeper in the shop.

“….Wait, you’re in love right now??”

Y/n found herself walking towards him, cornering him in a corner between the self-help books and the travel books.

“With who?? How do you know?? What does it feel like??”

He held up his hands, looking nervous, “Ea-easy there Y/n!”

“Oh!” she quickly backed up, “Sorry!”

He relaxed a bit, but still couldn’t look her in the eye, “It-it’s like I said; I-I wouldn’t know anything about being in love.”

He looked so sad, and she knew he was lying. There was a part of her that wanted to just tell him that he could share with her, that she wanted to help him in any way she could and to make him confide in her, but seeing him now….

_‘He’s got the posture I do when Vic corners me.’_

“Okay.” She mumbled, taking another step back, “I just thought I would ask.”

She went off to finish locking up for the day, feeling oddly conflicted and suddenly a lot more empathetic towards her sister. The desire to just help him, to have him open up to her and bound with him had taken her quite by surprised.

_‘Wonder if that’s how she feels?’_

~*~

Felix left soon afterwards, saying that he’d let Metatton know about the progress he had been asked to find out she was making with the book. Another apology, another telling her she was okay, and Y/n locked the door behind him, leaving her with only her anxiety to keep her company. She constantly checked her phone and even toyed with the idea of asking what was happening, but always chickened out at the last minute, tying up and deleting message after message.

As the sky darkened, she ended up eating a simple dinner, watching some video online to pass the time, when all she could think about was how Papyrus had changed his mind.

_‘Which makes sense. After all, what had I done to deserve anyone ever loving me?’_

Perhaps that explained why none of this felt real, why her emotions were so unsure. Papyrus saying that he loved her seemed to have totally out of the blue; more akin to a mood swing than something deeper. It had happened all so fast, too fast really, and love had to surely be one of those things that happened over time, the longer you knew a person. They were friends, close friends, a friend she would do just about anything to help him, but anything more than that…

Y/n wasn’t a believer in love at first sight. Attraction at first sight, sure, but not love and WHY DID HER MIND JUST GO THERE??

Turning off her computer hurriedly, she instead wrapped herself into her throw-over blanket and stared outside, waiting for the blush to die down.

 _‘…If this was any other night, I’d definitely be heading down to the beach to think about all this.’_ She thought after a while.

Her mobile phone rang out, startling her. Fumbling to find the pocket’s entrance, she eventually managed to pull out her phone, reading over Papyrus’s message.

 **The Great Papyrus:** Y/N, WOULD IT BE OKAY IF YOU WALKED TO THE BEACH?

Anxiety twisted her stomach as all her doubts filled her mind, making her feel totally unprepared for this. In her mind came any number of ridicules scenarios that showed Papyrus had gone to obscene lengths to make this as romantic as he could (if his planning had been anything to go on.) From parking a cruise ship on the shoreline, to hiring a private restaurant to cater to them on the sands. No matter what she imagined, every scenario was filed with strangers staring at her misty-eyed, watching with raptors attention to her every move.

After texting a ‘sure’ back, which did not convey just how unsure she was, Y/n went to her wardrobe, pulling out shirt after shirt as she tried to figure out what the hell she was going to wear. Should she dress up or dress down?? What if he made her run and she was wearing something that was in no way designed for physical activity? What if she went in her raggy shirts and it turns out it was that restaurant thing happening??

In the end, she settled for her black jeans, a nice top and her hoodied jacket, which she planned to keep on until it was pried off her. If need be, it could be something she could hide into, if it came to that.

~*~

When she finally stepped outside, it was to the sight of tea lights spaced out and heading towards the path she normally took to get to the beach. Knowing that they could only have been placed there by one skeleton, she started to follow them, dread set in.

“Y/N! WAIT!”

Y/n screamed as the all too familiar voice called out behind her, her heightened nerves unable to deal with any surprises right now.

Papyrus came jogging towards her, wearing very much what he had on the night of the club, only with a blue flower in his lapel and twisting his own hands, nervously.

“I-I DIDN’T SEE YOU COME OUT!” he pointed to the street lamp out the front of her store, “I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU THERE FOR A WHILE NOW! I-I DIDN’T MEAN TO SCARE YOU.”

“I-I’m okay.” She said, breathlessly, placing a hand over her racing heart.

He tittered on the edge of helping her and giving her space, settling for standing off to the side and twisting his hands more.

“SORRY.”

“No, no! It’s fine, really.”

Papyrus’s head dropped, “IT’S ALL GONE SO WRONG SO QUICKLY.”

She reached out and patted the side of his arm, “If any of your plans ever have to rely upon me not getting startled, then they’re doomed to failure. I promise Papyrus, it’s okay.”

He reached over and patted the hand that she had on him, patting her back, “THANK YOU.”

She blushed, “N-no problem.”

He didn’t let go of her hand, instead, taking it off his arm so he could place his other hand on it instead, holding her hand between his.

She looked up to see him staring intently at her.

“Pap-Papyrus?”

He beamed, “LET US CONTINUE, SHALL WE?”

~*~

Papyrus didn’t say much as they walked along the path that was laid out with tea lights, leading towards the beach. He also didn’t let go of her hand, guiding her towards wherever the eventual destination was. Any time she asked him a question or tried getting him to divulge more information, he would simply squeeze her hand briefly, looking over at her with a beaming smile, before saying “SOON.” in a soft voice.

It was an exhilaration experience and Y/n swapped constantly between to anticipation and dread. Like being on a rollercoaster, she found herself building up her anxiety, fear, and doubts, before allowing herself to just be happy that this was really happening, only for the build up to start again.

When they did eventually arrive, Y/n could tell that there was some set up on the bench she normally met up with Papyrus, the exact same picnic bench she had been sitting on when Papyrus had been introducing himself.

Y/n let loose the breath she hadn’t realised she had been holding as she took all of this in. ‘At least there isn’t a crowd or waiters, or a band….I think.’

Papyrus rubbed the back of her hand affectionally, before eagerly pulling her towards the bench.

“THIS WAY!” he said, a quiver of excitement clear in his voice.

As they approached the bench, she saw that Papyrus had laid a tablecloth across it the picnic table, complete with lit candles, fancy tableware and silverware, a pair of crystal champagne glasses, a small clear vase with a small rose in it, and a picnic basket off to the side.

“THIS IS YOUR SEAT, Y/N!”

He guided her to one side of the table, refusing to let go of her hand till she was sitting, whereupon he hurried to the other side, sitting down quickly himself. After a while, after he had done nothing but just sit there and beam at her, Y/n asked, “Um, Papyrus?”

“HMM?”

“Is-is there anything else that’s supposed to be happening?”

He looked confused, until sudden realisation hit him, “OH! THAT’S RIGHT!”

He quickly fetched out his phone, going through a list before hitting a button. Classical, typical romantic music began playing as he placed his phone off to the side.

She looked up from the phone’s screen to him “Is the song’s title actually called ‘[Beautiful Romantic Dinner Music](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeHqIRNZkJs)’?” 

“IT SURE IS!” Papyrus patted the front of his jacket, and if Y/n didn’t know any better, she would have sworn he was tapping the cover of a book, “I’VE MEMORISED EXACTLY HOW A DATE IS SUPPOSED TO GO!”

“You’re following a plan? As in, you’re getting your advice from a book?” Her smile softened, “Papyrus, you don’t need to follow someone’s advice like that.”

He cocked his head to the side, “BUT Y/N, WE’RE MAKING A BOOK THAT TELLS PEOPLE EXACTLY HOW TO COOK.”

“Yeah, but books like those are normally meant for people who don’t know what they’re doing.”

He looked to his hands, “AND WHAT IF THAT PERSON’S ME AND DATING?”

She looked to her hands too, “We-well then, I-I guess you should read a book to help you, but yo-you should only do the parts that make sense to you.”

“I SEE.”

After a while, he reached over and turned off the music.

“I THINK THIS MUSIC IS PRETTY SILLY.”

He stood up and made his way over to her side, sitting right next to her, “AND IF I COULD PICK ANY SIDE OF THE TABLE TO SIT ON, IT WOULD MOST CERTAINLY NOT BE THE ONE OPPOSITE OF YOU!”

She blushed, scooting over, “Hee, we-welcome aboard, partner.”

He threw his arms around her, hugging her to his side, “GLAD TO BE HERE INSTEAD!”

He soon let her go and leaned towards the picnic basket instead, pulling out dishes of somehow still piping hot, was served under silver serving tray covers.

“BONE’APERTIE!” He happily sang, placing one before her before what he said registered in his mind.

She giggled, flashing him a large smile as she said, “I guess Sans is having a bigger impact on you than you realise, Mr Pun Master!”

Papyrus gasped in mock horror, “STARS HELP ME!”

They shared a moment of laughter under the starry sky, the sound of gentle waves crashing off to the side as moon softly light up the area and the night coloured everything in cool colours.

When it ended, Papyrus leaned over and took the cover off her plate, revealing (unsurprisingly) pasta.

“I should have guessed.” She said, looking over at his plate as he took the plate of his dish.

“OF COURSE!” He said, leaning over to place the covers back into the basket, pulling both a bottle of champagne and a teapot.

He placed these things on the table, looking momentarily lost, before turning to ask her, “UM, SO WHICH DRINK WOULD YOU LIKE Y/N?”

“You brought tea?” she asked, surprised.

He nodded, beaming, “IT’S THE SAME BLEND OF TEA I MAKE FOR YOU AT THE CAFÉ!”

‘ _The tea with his emotions in it.’_ She thought, looking down at the plate of pasta on her plate, _‘This is probably made the same way.’_

“I-I’ll take the tea.” She said, quietly.

Papyrus poured her a glass of tea in her champagne glass, before serving it to her, confused on why she was smiling. “WHAT IS IT?”

Y/n shook her head, keeping her eyes on the champagne glass, “Oh, it’s nothing.” She raised her glass up, “A toast?”

“THAT’S A GLASS, Y/N, NOT A PIECE OF TOAST.”

“Hee, hee. No, I mean, it’s tradition to make a toast when drinking from this kind of glasses. Something to look forward to.”

“OH!” his face lit up as he held his glass up, “I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO HAVING YOU IN EVERY MOMENT OF MY LIFE, Y/N.”

She blushed, her eyes dropping off to the side. “S-same.”

There was a moment of silence.

“WHAT’S SUPPOSE TO HAPPEN NEXT Y/N?” Papyrus asked, still holding up his glass.

“Oops, sorry Papyrus.” She clinked her glass against his before taking a sip. “There. We’re toasted.”

Now that she was cued in to what to look for, Y/n feel differences in her emotions and the newer ones that came from the tea. While she felt a boost to her excitement and the familiar feelings of fondness, she was surprised to feel her nervousness and self-doubts increasing sharply.

He- he was scared too.

“REALLY?” He looked at his glass, inspecting the liquid, before shrugging and clinking his glass against hers and taking a sip as well. Placing his glass on the table, he rubbed his chin thoughtfully, “I DON’T FEEL ANY DIFFERENT AND THE DRINK WAS THE SAME PERFECT SELF AS ITS ALWAYS BEEN.”

She placed her glass on the table too, “It’s not about changing the anything. It- it’s more about making a wish and hoping it comes true.”

“WE HAVE SOMETHING LIKE THAT BACK UNDERGROUND.” He said, looking at the stars.

She followed his gaze, and asked softly “Like what?”

He grinned, looking over at her, “PLEASE EAT Y/N! A PERFECT DATE SHOULD ALWAYS INCLUDE GOOD FOOD, AND THIS FOOD IS THE BEST I’VE EVER PREPARED!”

Smiling, she picked up her fork and twirled some pasta onto it, taking a bite of it. It indeed was very good, and she couldn’t but help humming in delight as she went for another bite.

“This is very good!” She said, going back for another mouthful.

Papyrus’s blush illuminated his face, in spite of the candlelight, showing just how big he was smiling as he ate. As they ate together, he inched his way towards her, stopping when he was nearly touching her. At first, she didn’t know how to react and tensed up, but when he didn’t move again, she found herself leaning in towards him, pressing herself lightly to his side, both of them smiling.

“WE HAD SOMETHING CALLED A WISHING ROOM, BACK UNDERGROUND.” Papyrus said softly, after a while, “IT’S A CAVERN FILLED WITH THESE LITTLE GEMS THAT TWINKLE AND SPARKLE IN DARK. THE OLDER MONSTERS SAID THEY LOOKED A BIT LIKE STARS, THINGS THAT HUNG IN THE HUGE OPEN SKY THAT WERE REALLY JUST SUNS SO FAR AWAY THAT THEIR LIGHT LOOKED SMALL. NO ONE, AT LEAST, NO MONSTER BORN AFTER OUR BANISHMENT, COULD PICTURE JUST SO MUCH SPACE, SO THAT ROOM BECAME A PLACE WE WOULD GO TO IMAGINE OURSELVES IN SUCH A STRANGE WORLD WITH THAT MUCH ROOM. TO WISH FOR OTHER THINGS THAT ONLY SEEMED LIKE THEY COULD HAPPEN WITH GRANTED WISHES.”

He looked away from the stars to see Y/n watching him, before looking at her hand on his.

“I-I don’t know what to say.” She whispered.

It was one thing to hear and know about a terrible injustice that happened, but it was another thing to have a face attached to it. To see how hard, how hopeless it had been for monster kind.

Especially when that face was one you cared for.

He grasped her hand, lifting it up with a smile, “BUT IT’S ALL GOOD NOW, BECAUSE I GET TO SEE THE STARS FOR MYSELF, AND I GET TO LOOK AT THEM WITH YOU! MY WISH ABOUT BECOMING CAPTAIN OF THE ROYAL GUARD DIDN’T HAPPEN, BUT SO MANY OF MY OTHER ONES DID!”

“Like what?” she asked softly.

“I WISHED THAT ALL MY FRIENDS WOULD BE FREE, WHICH THEY ARE, I WISHED THAT SANS WOULD BE HAPPY, WHICH HE KIND OF IS, AN-AND I WISHED FOR A FRIEND.” He met her eyes, “WHICH I NOW HAVE.”

She blushed, looking away, “You have plenty of friends, Papyrus. I think I meet just about all of them last night, when we were shaking hands?”

“…I DIDN’T THOUGH. NOT FOR THE LONGEST OF TIMES.”

She looked quickly back at him, to see him turning his body to face her as he stroked the back of her hand with his.

“…I…I FOUND MAKING FRIENDS HARD TO DO. WHEN I WAS UNDERGROUND, MOST MONSTERS WERE FRIENDLY WITH EACH OTHER, INCLUDING ME, BUT NONE OF THEM LIKED HANGING OUT WITH ME WHEN I INVITED THEM OVER FOR PASTA. UNDYNE WAS ALWAYS BUSY, BUT SHE ALWAYS MADE TIME FOR OUR COOKING LESSONS, WHICH I REALLY APPRECIATED, BUT…I WAS STILL LONELY.”

He took a deep breath, “WHEN MONSTERS GOT TO THE SURFACE, I ELECTED MYSELF AS THE MASCOT OF THE MONSTER KIND (BECAUSE I’M SIMPLE GORGEOUS), BUT THEN THE KING SAID IT SHOULD BE A DIFFERENT MONSTER, ONE THAT DIDN’T REMIND THE HUMANS OF THEIR DEATH…AND THAT SORT OF STUCK WITH ME. EVERY TIME I MET A HUMAN, THEY WOULD ALWAYS SCREAM AND RUN AWAY. IF THEY DIDN’T DO THAT, THEY LAUGHED AT ME. I EVEN HAD A HUMAN TRYING TO RAM ME OFF THE SIDE OF A CLIFF ONE LATE NIGHT WHEN I WAS DRIVING!”

“That’s really horrible, Papyrus.”

“BUT YOU DIDN’T REACT LIKE THAT AT ALL.” He looked up from their hands, into her eyes, “YOU ACTUALLY WENT OUT OF YOUR WAY TO HELP ME, TO TALK TO ME LIKE I WASN’T GOING TO HURT YOU AND YOU DIDN’T LAUGH AT ME. WHEN YOU AGREED TO MEET ME AGAIN, WHEN WE MET AT THIS VERY SPOT, I THOUGHT I WOULD JUST EXPLODE FROM SHEER EXCITEMENT AND JOY!”

Her eyes dropped to their hands. “…You say that like I’m not the lucky one.” She mumbled.

“Y/N.”

She didn’t look up.

“Y/N, PLEASE LOOK AT ME.”

She tried to, she wanted to, but she just couldn’t.

Instead, Papyrus raised their hands up, dragging her gaze up to meet his.

“BACK AT MTT FAB-ME-LOUS, SANS MADE ME REALISE THAT I HAD FEELINGS FOR YOU THAT I DIDN’T EVEN KNOW I HAD. YOUR SISTER SAID SOMETHING ABOUT ME NEEDING TO TAKE THE FIRST STEP WITH YOU, AND I FIND MYSELF WANTING TO DO THAT ANYWAY.”

Hearing that, her heart rate increased as she sucked in a breath. Letting out a shuddering breath, Y/n’s eyes dropped to what little space was between them, concentrating on the groves and folded of his tuxedo than whatever she was feeling right now.

She heard him chuckle, before something solid touched the top of her bowed head and he kept talking, his voice much quieter, but also a lot closer now.

“I KNOW YOU’RE SHY. I KNOW YOU DON’T LIKE LARGE CROWDS, OR MEETING NEW PEOPLE, OR BEING THE CENTRE OF ANYONE’S ATTENTION.” He let out a sigh, “BUT I ALSO KNOW THAT I KEEP FORGETTING THESE THINGS ABOUT YOU IN MY EXCITEMENT. THAT MAKES ME FORGET VERY IMPORTANT THINGS ABOUT YOU THAT I SHOULDN’T. YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN ALL MY PLANS I HAD FOR TODAY; I WANTED TO CARRY YOU FROM YOUR SHOP IN A HORSE-DRAWN CARRIAGE!”

She didn’t doubt him. Not even in the slightest.

“BUT I WANTED TO SHOW JUST HOW IMPORTANT YOU’VE BECOME TO ME, WHAT YOU WOULD ENJOY…HOPEFULLY.” The hand holding hers tensed up, “I WANTED THE PLACE OF OUR FIRST DATE TO BE SOMEWHERE SPECIAL, SO I PICKED THE PLACE THAT MEANS SO MUCH TO ME SINCE I MET YOU. EVERYTHING I’VE PLANNED TONIGHT, IT’S CONNECTED TO YOU. FROM EITHER THINGS WE’VE DONE TOGETHER, OR THINGS I KNOW YOU LIKE, OR THINGS I HOPE CAN CONVEY HOW I FEEL BECAUSE I DON'T THINK I KNOW HOW TO EXPLAIN IT. ALL OF IT, JUST TO SHOW YOU HOW MUCH I CARE FOR YOU.”

“But why?” She whispered, self-doubt forcing her to speak, “What could you possibly see-?”

He stopped her by lifting her head up, cupping her chin with his hand.

“WHY DO I LOVE YOU?” he asked.

Tears gathered in the corner of her eyes, yet still she nodded.

He smiled, as tears gathered in the corner of his eyes, “THE TRUTH IS I-I DON’T KNOW WHY OR EVEN IF I DO LOVE YOU. WHAT IS LOVE AND WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE?? MY DATING BOOK DIDN’T HAVE AN ANSWER, AND I HAVE NOTHING BUT QUESTIONS! WHY DO I FEEL SO HAPPY WHEN I SEE YOU? WHY DO I FEEL SO RELAXED AND SAFE WHEN YOU’RE NEAR ME? WHY DO MY ARMS FEEL LONELY IF YOU’RE NOT IN THEM?”

He brought her in for a hug, his chin resting on top of her head.

“I-I DON’T HAVE ANY ANSWERS Y/N. MAY-MAYBE IT’S BECAUSE I’VE GOT A SILLY SOUL, AN IMPULSIVE, SILLY, HANDSOME SOUL, AND IT’S MAKING ME SEEM FOOLISH AND NAÏVE AND SO INCREDIBLY HANDSOME. PROBLEM IS, I DON’T KNOW HOW ELSE TO LIVE MY LIFE. I-I’VE ALWAYS FOLLOWED MY SOUL, AND IT'S TELLING ME IT LIKES YOU, Y/N.”

“Y-you said something about it singing.” Her voice quivering into his suit, tightening the hug she had around him.

She felt him nod, “FOR A LONG TIME, I DIDN’T EVEN REALISE THAT IT WAS DOING THAT; I JUST THOUGHT I WAS EXCITED TO MEET A NEW FRIEND! BUT SEEING YOU WITH MATT, THINKING THAT YOUR SOUL BELONGED TO ANOTHER, THAT SHOOK ME, AND YET, I STILL DIDN’T KNOW. IT TOOK SOMEONE FAR LESS IMPULSIVE THAN ME TO GIVE ME A HINT, AND ONCE I DID, I WANTED TO GET EVEN CLOSER TO YOU.”

He moved his head from the top of her head to the side of her ear, whispering, “I-I WANT TO GET TO KNOW YOU, BETTER THAN ANYONE EVER HAS. I WANT TO KNOW EXACTLY WHAT MAKES YOU SMILE AND DO THOSE THINGS ALL THE TIME. I WANT TO KNOW WHAT MAKES YOU CRY AND KEEP YOU FROM THOSE THINGS FOREVER. I WANNA KNOW WHAT YOUR FAVOURITE SONG IS AND SING IT FOR YOU EVERY DAY, AND COOK YOUR FAVOURITE MEAL ON DAYS WHEN A GOOD MEAL WILL LIFT YOUR SPIRITS. I WANT TO HOLD YOU FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE AND NEVER LET GO….BUT MOSTLY, I JUST WANT YOU TO BE HAPPY.”

She leaned back to look up at him, the moon off to the side in the starry sky, “WHAT DO YOU WANT, Y/N?”

“I-I don’t know.” Her grip on the back of his shirt tightened, “This is moving so fast and I’m feeling all these things that don’t make sense to me. I-I know that I like being with you Papyrus. I like the idea that I get to keep knowing you for the rest of my life, that we get to do even more incredible things together. I love every moment I’ve had with you and yet I keep wishing for more. So why is my stomach twisting? Why am I so anxious and nervous about this? Why does it feel like this is moving so fast and why does it hurt just saying all of this??”

His hand wiped away the silent tears that were trickling down the side of her face, looking sad as he did so, but she stopped his hand for leaving her face, “Wait.”

He waited patiently for her to do something else, gazing at her as she closed her eyes and took a moment to compose herself.

“I-I want to keep seeing you Papyrus.” She opened her eyes, “I-I think I want to go on more d-dates with you….if you want to-“

He wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tightly, “NOTHING WOULD BRING ME GREATER JOY!”

His enthusiasm was infectious and it quickly robbed her of her anxiety and nervousness, making her instead wrap her arms around him in turn, hugging him just as tightly.

Before long, he was pulling her back, the widest smile across his skull she had ever seen, “THERE’S WILL BE PLENTY OF DATES, PROMISE!, BUT FIRST, LET ME TAKE YOU ON THE REST OF THIS ONE.”

From one of his pockets, he pulled out a small remote control, his eyes locked on hers.

“Papyrus, what’s-“

He pressed the button, and her question was answered.

The park was covered in lights. Not Christmas lights, but small light balls the seemed to hover and glow without a source, sparkling and twinkling back at the starry sky they were mimicking. Multiple colours bubbles and ribbons twisted and travelled through the air, like slowly, graceful living creatures. The footpath had lights running the entire path as it circled back, two rows of lights on either side. What was strange was the large, glowing blue circle on each of the large cement slabs, for if she didn’t know any better, she would have said were built in lights.

Grinning, Papyrus stood up and offered her his hand, “LET’S GOT FOR A DATE-NIGHT-MEANDER!”

She took his hand, allowing herself to be pulled up and guided towards the path. “Papyrus, how did you ever manage to do all of this?” she asked, amazed.

He beamed back at her, wiggling his eyebrows, “I’M JUST THAT AMAZING! I SAW HOW MUCH YOU ENJOYED SEEING THEM AT THE BAR, SO I DESIGNED THESE MYSELF!”

“That really is amazing!”

He blushed at her praise.

Holding onto her hand as she took in the fantastical sights, Papyrus and Y/n stepped onto the path and blue circle closest to them.

Only for blue circle to turn into a red X.

“Um, Papyrus?” she asked, looking up from her feet up to him.

He posed, with his red scarf flapping in the wind, “I HAVE DEVISED A PUZZLE FOR YOU, Y/N! NOW I CAN PAY YOU BACK FOR ALL THOSE BRAIN TEASERS YOU GAVE ME!”

It was strange to think that they were still doing those, after all these months. Brainteasers and walks around the park as a warm-up, jogging around it with a few changes in accordance to Papyrus’s plans for her.

A full circle indeed.

Looking ahead, she asked, “Okay, I’m game! So, what’s the objective?”

“MAKE ALL THE CIRCLES TURN INTO X’S, AND DON’T STEP OFF THE PATH.”

“That’s it?” she asked, a bit disappointed.

He grinned, “THAT’S IT!”

Shrugging, she lead the way, keenly aware that Papyrus wasn’t letting go of her hand, or her of his. On they seemed to walk, with Y/n looking at all the changes the floating bits of magic brought and Papyrus watching what the changes did to her smile.

However, they eventually came across a red X in their path, with the space it took up being large than she felt comfortable jumping.

“Um, is it suppose it be like this?” she asked, turning to face him.

Papyrus nodded, grinning. “GUESS THIS MEANS YOU’LL HAVE TO GO BACK AND SPEND EVEN MORE TIME WITH ME!”

“Cheeky.” She said, holding on to his hand, “But what stops me from just jumping on the switch and changing it that way?”

He stopped in mid rebuttal, staring at her. “I-I NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT THAT!”

She laughed, turning to walk back the way she had come from, “Guess it’s good then that I’m enjoying my date too much to ever think about cheating like that.”

~*~

The two walked along the path all night, making make trips backwards and forward to change all the circles into X’s. Every time they came across a different titled square that forced them back, Y/n merely smiled and complied, glad for the excuse to keep holding onto Papyrus’s hand and to keep talking to him. By the time the last circle was changed and the puzzle was solved, when the various lights, bubbles and ribbons had faded out with their spent magic, and the sun’s light was peaking over the horizon, Y/n and Papyrus were sitting on their bench, watching the dawn of the new day, still holding each other’s hands.

 

Next chapter is called: Dating Planning!


	17. I͘͡n̶͏k̴͡ ̸͞S̴͏ķ̵į̷͘p͢͜͡- (Non-Cannon/ Halloween Fun)

_In dimension c-137 (pre-Croneberg), a Undertale Fanfic writer by the pen name Rnd_Injustice discovers an internet ‘spell’ that relates to their relatively new interests. Laughing it off as just ‘something stupid but fun’, this writer went out and brought the ingredients required to complete the binding, following the instructions as listed[here](https://www.tumblr.com/dashboard/blog/rnd-injustice/178640180283) in the month of October._

_The following chapter is a direct result of a successful binding. All attempts to remove or alter this chapter have been unsuccessful._

_(Warning, this contains non-cannon: Angst, feels)_

An ink puddle appeared one day from out of nowhere.

At first, Y/n didn’t notice it as she sat with Papyrus on their bench by the beach in the morning light. It was only as a strange skeleton came towards them, calling to them as he walked, that they looked towards his direction and saw it behind him.

“Y/n! Papyrus! Ah, how nice it is to finally meet you!”

The strange skeleton had the similar build as Sans, although he dressed far more eccentrically and appeared to be covered in ink stains. A long, brown scarf was wrapped around his neck and trailed behind him on the sea’s breeze. He wore a sash over layered shirts, covered in what appeared to be painting supplies, which was made even more bizarre as he appeared to be carrying a comically sized paintbrush on his back. A blue hoodie tied around his waist seemed to be the least bizarre about him, even as Y/n thought it looked oddly familiar.

While her reaction to seeing another skeleton was cautious and certainly shy as she moved herself to hide behind Papyrus’s back, his reaction to seeing the new skeleton was eccentric.

“AH! NEW SKELETON!?” he cried, leaping onto his feet and bounding over to shake the approaching skeleton's hand, “I AM SO HAPPY TO MEET YOU!”

The strange skeleton matched his vigour, shaking his hand with just as much energy, “Not as happy as I am! Any time I meet a Papyrus is always a great moment for me!”

“A PAPYRUS?” Papyrus took a step back, looking shocked, “YOU’VE MET OTHER INDIVIDUALS THAT SHARE MY NAME?”

The strange skeleton laughed, holding his side as he dissolved into giggles and snorts, “No-not exactly, and yet, yes!” He beamed widely, “Still, each one of you is unique, and brings so much to the stories you’re in.”

“….STORIES?”

The strange skeleton walked passed and towards her, hand out, “Ah, a shy Reader-insert! And a bookworm at that! This introductory will be interesting!”

Y/n impulsively held out her hand, holding it loosely as this strange skeleton shook it. “How-how do you know that I like to read?”

She was beginning to wonder if it wasn’t spelled out on her forehead.

The strange skeleton let go of her hand with a sigh, “Ah, the ‘introducing myself and telling why I’m here’ part. Kinda tedious, but important to the story.”

He cleared his throat as Papyrus came quickly back over, hugging her to his side protectively, “So, my name is Ink. I’m an interdimensional traveller and I’ve come to mess around with this story for a bit by implementing a few suggestions I’m collecting from the Readers.”

Papyrus and Y/n just stared at him.

Ink grinned, “I get that a lot.”

“So…so you’re an interdimensional traveller?” Y/n asked, making sure she had heard him right.

He nodded, smiling widely.

“As in, you travel between realities?”

“Yep, different realities, different timelines, anything I want, really. Take right now; I’m currently visiting multiple stories at once.” he winked at her, “But here’s a question for you Readers; how or WHY am I am to do that? What’s the connection?”

“Re-readers?” She looked over to see Papyrus just as lost as her, “Are you talking to them right now?”

Her hand found Papyrus's, squeezing him hard to make sure this was really happening and, at what point, did they try getting away from this clearly insane monster?

He waved a hand right in front of her face, “I’m talking to them right now. Actually,” he pulled out his phone, “I’m texting them right now in the past, so they won’t actually see any of this till much later.”

Papyrus pulled her in front of him and turned to leave, “WELL, ME AND Y/N ARE GOING TO LEAVE YOU ALONE WITH ALL YOUR TEXTING TO PEOPLE WHO REALLY EXIST! HAVE FUN!”

Ink was suddenly right in front of them, blocking their escape, “Hey now, you know it’s rude to call someone crazy and not even give them a chance to prove it.”

Papyrus moved her behind him, standing tall to Ink, “I would rather you leave us alone, thank you.”

Ink grinned, “Aww, it’s cute to see you get protective Paps.”

“PLEASE, FELLOW MONSTER. WE WOULD LIKE TO LEAVE AND DO SOMETHING ELSE AND YOU ARE CURRENTLY BLOCKING US FROM DOING THAT.”

“Hey! You’re not the only ones who want \sto do something else!” He held up his phone, “I have a few things I need to get through while I’ve got time!”

Papyrus rubbed his chin, looking thoughtful, “YES, THAT SEEMS VERY-“

In the next instance, he picked Y/n up in his arms and made a break for it, effortless dodging and leaping over all obstacles as he ran towards the open streets.

Only to pop back to in front of Ink suddenly.

“WHAT??” he cried, skidding to a halt.

Ink waved, “Hi there.”

Papyrus ran in the other direction, but the weird thing happened again. This time, however, Papyrus kept running, but no matter how many times he nearly reached the street, he would simply pop back to where he was before, Ink smirking off to the side.

“Papyrus.” Y/n said, tapping the side of his skull to get his attention, “Stop.”

He slowed to a jog, looking down at her. “I-I’M SORRY Y/N. I-I DON’T KNOW HOW TO GET AWAY FROM THIS SKELETON!”

She sighed, watching as the world blipped once again and he jogged passed a still smug Ink, “Perhaps we should call for help? Ring the police, or even the Royal Guard?”

“How about Sans?” Her voice suggested, without her actually speaking.

Papyrus's eyes light up as Y/n covered her mouth in alarm, “SANS! HE’S ALWAYS READING THOSE SPACE BOOKS AND DOING THE MATHS FOR INTERDIMENSIONAL TRAVEL! IF ANYONE KNOWS ANYTHING ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON HERE, IT’LL BE HIM!”

He stopped half the distance from the park’s entrance, with Ink still behind him. As he pulled out his phone and texted one-handed as his other hand continued to hold her, only Y/n noticed that the land under them began shifting, pulling away from them. Looking up, she watched as Ink ‘roped’ them in, winking when he saw her looking at him.

By the time Papyrus had sent off his text, they were back where they were before; right in front of Ink.

“Enjoy your run?” he asked, barely holding back his snickers.

“You can’t keep us trapped here like this.” Y/n said, acting braver than she felt, in the face of this powerful threat.

Ink snorted, “Cliché much, Y/n? Aren’t you suppose to read lots of books?”

“That’s why I know you can’t keep us trapped here. Some one’s bound to come over and help us eventually.”

“Would it surprise you that I’m also controlling time?” He asked, grinning smugly.

But Y/n wasn’t fooled, “You distinctly made a comment about time being limited for you. In fact, I think your exact words were ‘I have a few things I need to get through while I’ve got time.’.”

“THAT’S RIGHT!” Papyrus nodded, looking braver himself as realised there was hope yet.

Ink looked bashful, “Oops, I guess I did slip up there.” Before they had a chance to smile, he quickly added, “But that doesn’t mean time for you is limited. Let’s me use a metaphor/ not a metaphor because it’s real, kinda thing.” He cleared his throat, “When you’re reading a book, it takes you however long you want it to. Read it as quick as you can, put the book down and come back to it later; your time is still moving. But what about the characters in the book? Do you think time paused for them when you stop reading? Do you think they notice the passage of time in ‘real’ world or when the author skips large sections of their time to keep the story moving?” He grinned, “Consider me a Reader, and you guys, characters in a book; I have all the time in that one, real sense.”

In the next instance, Sans popped out of the thin air, looking around with a laid-back smile, “okay, pap-“

He stopped dead when he saw Ink.

Ink waved, “Hello Sans.”

“um, hi.” Sans moved closer towards them, looking between his brother holding Y/n protectively and this skeleton that sort of looked like him, grinning just as lazily as he normally did. “i didn’t know there were other skeleton monsters out there in the world.”

Ink laughed, “Well, not in this reality.” he offered his hand to Sans, “The name’s Ink. Ink the interdimensional traveller.”

Sans looked between his outstretched hand to Ink’s smiling face.

“….is this some sort of joke pal?”

“Not at all! I’d swear on my soul, if I had one.”

Sans hunched into his jacket, his shoulder stiffening as his smile became more fixed, “alright pal, where did you come from?”

Ink smiled as he dropped his hand, putting it on his hips, “Let me answer your real question and assure you, your machine is still comfortably broken and still off.”

Sans’s grin got tighter, “what ma-“

“The one you’ve got in the basement back at your old place in the Underground, but you still keep going back to, spending what free time you get fixing it? The one Paps here had to rebuild after the last guy blew himself out of existence, leaving behind burnt notes and the vaguest sense of what he was trying to do?” Ink leaned forward, “Shall I go on?”

Sans eyes vanished, “why are you here?”

Ink stood back up, “For the lols. Actually, for this story, its to act out a few Reader ideas, starting with this.”

Ink snapped his fingers, and, just like that, Sans disappeared into a blue puff cloud of smoke and dropped to the ground as a squat, fluffy blue cat.

“A lot of people wanted to see you as a cat Sans, across different stories too.” Ink bent down, scratching Sans head, “Sorry/ not sorry.”

Sans the cat swiped at Ink’s hand, growling threateningly in his chest.

Papyrus quickly picked up his brother and held him back, turning his side to shield him protectively. “RETURN MY BROTHER TO HIS ORIGINAL SELF!”

Ink shrugged, “Can’t Paps. I’m just giving the people what they want.” He eyed him cheekily, “Speaking of what the people want-.”

Ink grabbed the paintbrush from his back suddenly, and before any of them could react, jammed it into Papyrus’s face, brushing all over his body. Papyrus, acting on impulse, held up his hand to protect his face from the abrasive brush and dropped Sans in the process, who skited to Y/n’s legs.

“Papyrus!” Y/n cried out, reaching for him.

He turned around in his all too familiar orange hoodie, looking at her in surprise, “y/n? what’s wrong honey?”

She slowed to a few inches from him, feeling very confused.

“I-I don’t know.” She rubbed her head, “I-I feel like something’s changed, but I don’t know what.”

Papyrus looked himself over, doing a little twirl cheekily, “ink didn’t get paint on my clothes did he?”

“No?” she said, feeling like that wasn’t it.

“Y/N!” Snapped a familiar angry voice behind her, “GET AWAY FROM THAT IMPOSTER!”

Turning around, Y/n saw Papyrus for the briefest second before he was pulled her away, locking his arms around her protectively. Feeling even more confused, she looked up into his face, noting quickly the familiar scars across one of his eye sockets as his red eye lights burned bright.

He wasn’t looking at her as he faced…Papyrus? “I DON’T KNOW WHO YOU ARE, BUT-HEY!”

Y/n was teleported out of Papyrus’s arms and into Papyrus arms, the smell of dog treats clinging to his black, fur-lined jacket as his exposed arms wrapped around her waist.

“hey darling, mind telling me what’s happening here?”  He asked her with that familiar husky growl in his voice.

“I have no idea.” she said simply, looking between Papyrus in his old orange jacket and Papyrus in his eye-catching, knee-high boots.

How was it that she knew them, remembered how she met and came to befriend each other them, with no recollection of ever doing so while she was meeting the others?! To her, it was like she met and befriended them all at the exact same time?!

That wasn't possible!

The Papyrus in the orange hoodie was frowning at the Papyrus that held her, his hands deep in his pocket, “pal, i don’t know who you are, but if you don’t let her go, then you and me are going to have a little disagreement.”

The Papyrus she knew had a gold fang and a collar around his neck chuckled, “oh dear. i’m shaking in my boots.”

“FINAL WARNING!” The Papyrus in black and red summoned a bone weapon as aggressive magic burst from his eyes, “LET MY HUMAN GO!”

“Stop it!” She yelled, pushing herself away to stand in the middle of the three different, yet known Papyruses.

She took a deep breath, “I have no clue what's happening, but I don’t want you to fight each other!”

“you been seeing others?” The Papyrus with the gold tooth asked, a flash of betrayal crossing his always composed smile before he could hide it broke her heart.

She reached out to him, “No! I-!”

“HOW COULD YOU?!” Cried the Papyrus in red boots, his grip threatening to break the bone weapon in his hand, “I TRUSTED YOU!”

His voice betrayed how deeply his pain ran to her apparent betrayal, and again, her heart broke to hear it in his voice.

The Papyrus in the orange hoodie sighed deeply, before smiling lazily at her, the bag under his eyes getting darker, “i guess i always knew you were too good for me.”

Y/n could feel tears sliding down her cheeks. The only thing that gave her strength was that she knew she was innocent.

“I didn’t betray anyone!” She cried out, looking around her and saw only disbelief there, “I feel like I’ve known you all of you for the longest time now! At the exact same time! Ever since I met you, my life has only gotten better! I would never lie, to any of you!”

“DON’T TRY TO PLACATE US!” snapped the Papyrus in the red boots, “YOU’VE BEEN CAUGHT LYING AND CHEATING! HAVE THE DECENCY TO ADMIT THAT AND STOP LYING ABOUT HOW MUCH WE MEAN TO YOU!”

But she shook her head, hastily rubbing away her tears that wouldn’t stop, “I swear, I promise, I’m not lying!”

 She pointed to the Papyrus in the orange hoodie as her eyes softened through tears, “You walked me from my house, all the way to the beach when I wanted to spend some time alone there in the earliest hours before dawn. You were working the night shift on the mall security and said that you were worried about my safety. I-I ended up talking to you instead, and we stayed there for hours long after the sun rose, just-just talking.”

As his shoulder’s relaxed, she moved on to the Papyrus in red boots, “I met you when you were going for a jog at the crack of dawn. I was the only one there, and eventually, you came over to yell at me to stop staring at you.”

The Papyrus in red boots scowled, looking hastily away, “I-I REGRETTED MY RUDENESS LATER.”

“I don’t,” she smiled softly, wiping away her tears, “I was so shocked by your confrontation that I couldn’t apologise. I-I waited till you were about to leave before I ran over to you, apologising quickly as I ran away.”

The Papyrus in red boots finally met her eyes as the bone weapon in his hands vanished in a cloud of red dust, “IT WAS THE FIRST TIME A HUMAN HAD EVER BOTHERED APOLOGISED TO ME, TO SEEK ME OUT AND APOLOGISE SINCERELY. I-I WANTED TO FIND OUT WHY YOU DID IT.”

“And that’s how our morning jogs started.” At last, her eyes meet the Papyrus with a gold fang, “And I tripped over you in the dark as I made my way to the beach. You had fallen asleep doing your night shifts and I was worried about you, so I brought you back into my house and watched over you. When you woke up, you-you said that I was stupid for helping you and that you were dangerous to me.”

“YOU SAID THAT YOU DIDN’T CARE.” He smirked, “that even if you knew i would kill you, you would have done the exact same thing, because it was the right thing to do.”

“Then you started coming over into my shop during the days, pushing all my buttons.” She smiled weakly, rubbing her eyes on the butt of her palm, “I want you all to tell the others when that happened.”

They all said the date out loud, shocking each other that it was the exact same date.

“I-I don’t claim that I’m the greatest person on this planet.” she looked around at them all, “But I don’t think cheaters and lairs can alter time like that.”

“HOW-HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE??” Papyrus in red boots cried out, shocked to his core, “THERE HAS TO BE SOME SORT OF MISTAKE!”

“alternative realities.” Said both the Papyrus in the orange hoodie and the gold-fanged one at the same time, turning to look at each other in surprise.

“you know about au’s?” the orange one asked the gold-fanged one.

He nodded.

“WHAT ARE AU’S?” asked the red-boots Papyrus.

“alternative universes,” explained the Papyrus in the orange hoodie, “the idea that you have different versions of yourself, across different planes of existence in infinite timelines.”

“going to go out on a limb here and say that you both have a brother called sans?” The Papyrus with a gold fang asked.

The other two nodded.

“Sans?” Y/n asked, looking about as she realised something, “Sans! Where are you?!”

Sans came out then from his forging of the nearby bushes, making a running leap into her arms as she stroked his soft fur.

“THIS IS SANS?” The Papyrus in red-boots asked.

She nodded, “He was turned into a cat by….” she was blanking on that part, “by something that I’m forgetting right now.”

“probably the force responsible for this.” growled the gold-fang Papyrus.

The orange Papyrus looked around at the other two, “either of you recognise this sans’s soul?”

They both shook their heads slowly.

“IT’S STRANGE,” the red-booted Papyrus said, leaning in to peer closely at Sans in her arms, “HE HAS AN EXTREMELY SIMILAR SOUL TO THE SANS I UNFORTUNATELY CALL BROTHER, BUT THERE’S SOMETHING DIFFERENT ABOUT HIM.”

Y/n shrugged, “This guy is the only Sans I’ve ever met, so I’m afraid I couldn’t say for sure….not that I can sense souls, mind you.”

“really?” The Papyrus in the orange hoodie looked to the others, ”then that suggests that this is the sans from this timeline. and since none of us recognises this version as our brother….”

“none of us are from this timeline.” finished the gold-fanged Papyrus as the red-booted Papyrus nodded his agreement.

“Curses!” Ink said, popping back into existence, “I forgot to add the Sanses into this cannon!”

The three Papyrus spun around to face Ink, just as her memories came flooding back to her.

“You! What have you done to the Papyrus from this timeline! The one I’m writing a book with?!”

Ink shrugged, “He’s fine. Don’t worry, I need to bring him back anyway at some point to get through the rest of my list.”

“i’m assuming this is the guy, honey?” The Papyrus in the orange hoodie asked her.

She nodded as Sans growled deeply from his chest.

“Are you going to keep fighting over her?” Ink asked as he looked at the three Papyruses, hope in his eyes. “Fight for the love your lives?? Only one of you can be her forever babe, you know.”

“why, because that’s what you want?”  The gold-fanged Papyrus asked, leaning back with his hands in his jacket’s pockets.

Ink sighed, “Any chance I can convince any of you to play along, anyway?”

None of them bothered to do much more than glare at him.

“ALTHOUGH,” the Papyrus with the red boots said, taking a step forward as he re-summoned his weapon, “I’M MORE THAN WILLING TO ‘THANK YOU’ FOR YOUR INTERFERENCE IN Y/N’S LIFE.”

“Even though she isn’t the one from your timeline?” Ink asked, genuinely shocked.

“IT DOESN’T MATTER,” the red-boot Papyrus said as the other two nodded their agreement, coming to stand by his side and glaring at Ink menacingly, “YOU FUCKED WITH THE WRONG HUMAN AND THE WRONG SKELETONS.”

Ink sighed deeply, before taking the brush from his back. Sweeping it from one side to the other, the Papyrus in the orange hoodie was knocked into the Papyrus in the red boots, who then stumbled into the Papyrus with the gold-fang, who was knocked to the ground, looking up and around dazed as the Papyrus she knew so well.

“Papyrus!” Y/n cried out, flinging herself into his arms, “You’re back!”

“I LEFT?” He asked, looking surprised by her hugging him as fervently as she was, but quick to wrap his arms around her, hugging her just as tightly. Sans was nuzzling his brother’s side, and only after nuzzling Y/n for a few moments did Papyrus pull a hand away to pat his brother affectionally.

“See?” Ink said, still looking like he was sulking, “Good as new.”

Y/n helped Papyrus to his feet before picking Sans up. The three of them faced Ink as Papyrus wrapped his arms around Y/n’s shoulders.

“I DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU DID, BUT I DON’T THINK I WOULD HAVE LIKED IT.”

“Then maybe I can make it up to you.” He grinned, “How about I show you what the rest of your lives will be like? You know, time-skip to key, fun events?”

“I THINK WE’D RATHER NOT KNOW WHAT MAY OR MAY NOT COME TO PASS.” Papyrus insisted.

“And how do know we can trust anything you have to show us?” Y/n asked, “What stops you from showing us whatever you like and claiming it’s the future?”

Ink twirled the large paintbrush in his hand, “It’s okay, you won’t remember any of this, so we can skip the whole debate about whether or not knowing the future allows you to make changes or if you're destined to play it out, exactly as you saw.”

“That doesn’t answer our questions.” Y/n insisted.

“OR RESPECT OUR WISHES!” Papyrus said, hugging Y/n tiger to his side.

Ink shrugged, “It was never about ‘your’ wishes.” He beamed, brandishing his paintbrush, “Let’s see how this all plays out!”

Before they could say anything, Ink began to wave the brush about in the air, each stroke taking away their reality and replacing it with something else. Y/n felt her mind slipping, changes, learning and remembering more that she had yet to experience, till, at long last, it came to a stop.

~*~

Blinking suddenly, Y/n rubbed her head as a wave of dizziness hit her as suddenly as it went.

There was a hushed murmur off to one side and the sound of crashing waves of the other, but for Y/n, she could only stare at the sight before her.

Papyrus in a very handsome, eye-catching colourful tuxedo, complete with a top hat. He was currently holding her hands and had the same look of confusion that she felt she had as well.

“Y/N?” he whispered to her, looking side to side quickly, “ARE-ARE WE GETTING BOUNDED??”

She started, looking around as well.

The murmuring crowd she had heard was a mixed group of humans and monsters split into two groups, a Christmas-lighten path leading to where they both stood as bubbles, ribbons and lights danced over the crowd. Her sister, Matt, and Felix stood off on her side, with her sister mouthing the words ‘I do’ at her, while Sans, Undyne, and Pete stood on Papyrus’s side, also looking confused up at her.

Not that Sans had any right to look at all confused, seeing as he now appeared to have large blue cat ears, bushy blue tail and whiskers permanently a part of his skull. Eventually, he waved his hand at her, startling her out of her blatant staring, before pointing back at Papyrus with a questioning look.

“I, um, I think the young Y/n might have forgotten what she's supposed to do here.” A deep voice boomed off to the side of the sound of waves were coming from.

Turning to look at whoever spoke, she was startled to see a large, horned-goat monster towering over her, wearing a Hawaiian shirt as he wore a crown of golden flowers over his long, golden hair. Behind this looming monster was a beach she expected to see.

 _‘Not any beach!’_ she realised, _‘But the one we were just standing at! The one where Papyrus and I first met!’_

The large monster cleared his throat, looking awkward, “If, um, if you’re changing your mind-“

She quickly shook her head as memories of every event, every date, and every failed attempt at Papyrus’s end to propose to her as nerves and his own impossible stands of perfection kept him deviating from just asking, till she proposed to him, came to the forth of her mind. “I’m sorry, my mind wandered. Wh-what do I have to do?”

Papyrus's hands tightened around hers as his the fear and look of confusion left his eye lights.

“You have to bring out your soul-“ King Asgore stopped himself and took a moment to compose himself as he wiped away a stray tear at the corner of his eyes, “So-sorry, I’m not good a wedding. I’ll- I’ll say it again.” He cleared his voice, “Y/n, do you offer your whole soul to Papyrus? To forever be bounded together, united by love, friendship, and family, till at last your ashes rest together upon the things you loved together in life?”

There was only one answer she could give.

“I do.” she said, looking at the monster she was already bounded to, in all ways but one.

Agores’s smile reached his teary eyes as he turned to Papyrus, “Papyrus, do you offer your whole soul to Y/n? To forever be bounded together, united by love, friendship, and family, till at last your ashes rest together upon the things you loved together in life?”

Papyrus placed her hands to his chest as he stared deeply into her eyes, the brightest, most loving smile she had ever seen. “I DO!”

Asgore quickly looked away again to wipes his eyes yet again, the sound of barely repressed, shuddering sob sounding over the waves.

Turning back, he valiantly continued, “Th-then, if you will, pre-present your souls to each other and become forever one!”

Y/n knew how to do this now. It had been a long time since the first time she managed to pull her own soul out and even longer since Papyrus had shown her her own soul to her. Both memories were precious to her, but then, she treasured every memory she had with her Papyrus.

 _‘Mine.’_ she thought proudly even as tears gathered in her own eyes, _‘My truest friend, and the love of my life. My soulmate.’_

Papyrus let go of her hands to bring out his soul, allowing her to return her hands to her and pull out her soul. When it came, it shone brilliantly in the dawn’s light, as surreal and yet so personal as every other time before. Normally, she’d feel exposed; vulnerable and just waiting for something to hurt her in the truest sense. Yet, right now, surrounded by loved ones and her love, she didn’t feel any of that. Instead, she felt truly accepted; every flaw, very shameful weakness that she wanted no one to ever see was welcomed and accepted by the people around her.

She felt truly loved.

Looking at her soul hovering on her hand, she noticed, once again, it’s mystifying colour. To her, it wasn’t just a colour; it was HER colour. The colour she had always gravitated towards her entire life. Seeing her soul now, bathed in this particular colour, elevated it from a simple shade she found appealing; it had depth, complexity in it, shifting and changing so subtly and in such complex ways, there was no doubt to her that it was alive.

She looked over to see Papyrus’s soul hovering on his hand and marvelled, as she had every time she had seen it, how precious, perfect, and alive it was too. While a clear and crisp shade of pure white, Y/n saw complexity in it as much as she did in her own soul. The soul pulsed to a beat of a different drum than hers, shifting in ways that she would often describe as erratic and eccentric. But from that chaos was a willingness to fight, to do what was right, to love, honour and respect no matter what. An unshakeable loyalty, an unwavering, single-determination to love passionately while holding nothing back. To be accepted fully as it gave everything it was to the one it had come to love.

He moved his soul to sit next to her, the two heart-shaped souls resting side by side on their retrospective owner's hands. It didn’t matter to them, or to anyone present, that the two souls where flipped mirrors of each other and different shapes. Suh concerns were for the shallow minded, who clung to the fear of change like primitives did to the shifting times.

All that mattered, to Papyrus and Y/n, was that these souls were theirs…and soon, they would never, ever, be alone.

Asgore hastily wiped away his eyes yet again, before taking a deep breath and stood a little taller. “Now, I will bind these two together. Such change will forever unite you, no matter how far you are apart, and you will never be alone as you will always linger in the other’s soul. However," His shoulders slumped, “To break this, to undo this, should the need ever arise, is a painful process that will forever leave you scared and maimed in a way that can never be prepared. When your soul mates leave you, whether in life or in death, causes such a terrible wound that will never heal. Are you prepared for such a consequence?”

They both nodded, no doubt in either of their minds.

Asgore nodded, before looking out to the crowd, “Can anyone think of a reason why this bounding should not happen?”

No one spoke, although a few wept in silence.

“Very well.”

With the finality of his words, Agore placed his hands to the back of Papyrus's soul and the front of Y/n’s, the two souls between his big paws. His eyes blazing in magic, he bowed his head and let his magic flow from one hand to the other.

As the magic flowed through one soul and out the other, Y/n felt small pieces of herself leaving her, only to be replaced with something so familiar and beloved. She treasured these pieces more than anything, for these pieces loved her back, wanting nothing more than to merge with her. Happily, tearfully, she opened herself wide to their embrace, holding them so tightly to her that soon, she couldn’t tell where they started and where she began.

When Asgore at last, lowered his hands, he, and everyone else, gazed upon the two souls now forever changed, each glowing lightly with the other’s colour.

“I-I CAN FEEL YOU!” Papyrus gasped aloud, holding his soul like it was his most treasured thing, “I-I CAN FEEL YOUR LOVE FOR ME, AS CERTAIN AS I KNOW MY NAME!”

“Of course I love, you goofball!” Y/n cried, throwing her arms into his as she kissed him full on the mouth, tears flowing down her cheeks because she was feeling the exact same thing from him.

_'My name is Y/n, and Papyrus loves me!'_

As Papyrus returned her kiss, spinning her around as he lifted her high into the air and as their souls spun around and with them, the crowd burst into an uproarious cheer, as strangers and friends alike wept and hugged each other openly under a glories new day.

~*~

Y/n woke up with a start, looking about her living room as something played on the television before her, the volume low. Thinking about what she had been dreaming about, she snuggled deeper in the pillow under her cheek, wiping away the few tears that the precious memory always brought.

The coffee table had a few houses she and Papyrus were looking at, a few drafts for more books they planned to write, and a newspaper that basically said that everything was fine, but she ignored all of that to force herself to relive that kiss once again.

“Y/N?” She heard Papyrus call from her kitchen.

She sighed, “In here.”

Papyrus came out, smiling goofily, even as he looked confused.

“I FELT AN OVERWHELMING SENSE OF LOVE FOR MY PERFECT SELF. SOMETHING SEPARATE FROM WHAT I NORMALLY FEEL ABOUT ME.”

“I was remembering our wedding day.” she smiled softly as, after she said the words, she felt his affection for that moment flow to her at the back of her mind, “Seems like you enjoyed that day as much as I did.”

“OF COURSE!” He lifted her up so that he could sit down, placing her head on his lap as he began to lovingly stroke her hair, “IT WAS THE MOST PERFECT MOMENT OF MY ENTIRE LIFE (WHICH IS AMAZING, CONSIDERING THAT MY LIFE IS ABSOLUTELY PERFECT!)”

She chuckled in his lap as she felt his confidence as her own, felt how her love for him only made him more confident, which made her feel more assured of herself.

They lay in each other’s arms, each enjoying the reassuringly comfort that having the other there simply brought. Neither of them were paying much attention to the television as, instead, they thought back to that particular day, examining each other’s already memorised feelings with fond content-ness.

“What’s your favourite memory?” She asked eventually, wondering what her answer was going to be when he asked her and trying to guess.

Papyrus thought about it, and as he did, she felt how each memory hit him as waves of his emotions flowed through their bound and became a blur of all their highs and lows. The first of memories, the silliest of memories. Memories that were painful but defining and refining as they help made their bound stronger.

Until, at last, he hit the perfect memory. Something that reinforced all their previous engagements, that showed that they would be together, now and forever always. Something that succeeded all the other memories, but could have only happened with them, and therefore, made each memory leading up to this particular memory forever a part of it.

“THE DAY YOU TOLD ME I WAS GOING TO BE A FATHER.” he whispered, kissing the top of her head as his other hand caressed her bulging stomach lovingly.

~*~

Y/n rubbed eyes in exasperation as she stared down both her husband and one of the children he was supposed to be minding.

“You want to explain that to me again?” She said crossly, as another glass shard from the broken window behind her fell from the frame and shattered on the front porches' balcony.

Papyrus and Blueberry, one of her oldest sons, both launched into their explanations at the same time.

“DEAREST! IT WASN’T OUR FAULT-!”

“THE BALL JUST CURVED IN THE AIR-!”

She held up her hand, hearing more than enough. She pointed to them, “And this is exactly why I said that playing ball this close to the house was a bad idea.”

Seeing two of her favourite guys drop their heads in shame, softened her heart. Sighing, she rubbed her eyes again, “Okay, look. You two clean up this mess and, I guess, tape some old newspapers over it. I want you both to promise me that this will never happen again, that you’ll stay well away from the house, like I said to do originally, and I’ll forgive you both.”

They both threw themselves into her arms, babbling their apologies and regret. Affectionately, she kissed them both, before sending them away to get started cleaning up their mess. When she saw them returning with brooms and a dustpan, Y/n went off to find the little troublemaker she more than suspected was actually responsible.

Walking into the front yard with its wide and abundant garden beds, she headed towards the old apple tree to see a familiar sleeping, cat-eared complete with whiskers skeleton, dozing at its base.

“Hello Sans.” she greeted, before her eyes drifted up to a high, thick branch above him, “Hello son of mine.”

Stretch, twin of Blueberry and the other oldest son, chuckled at her tone, “why, dearest mother of mine, can i _glass_ what’s wrong?”

“a _smashing_ idea.” grinned his bad influence of an uncle, not bothering to open his eyes.

“You’re such a bad influence on Stretch, Sans.” Y/n playfully scolded, before looking around, “But I’m here to ask if you’ve seen the others. I’m looking for one in particular.”

Sans shrugged, “edge and black are running somewhere, throwing rocks at each other-“

“BOYS!!” She yelled crossly, wondering if they were smart enough to come to her on their own free will.

Sans chuckled as his ears flickered in mild annoyance, before continuing. “stretch is there,” he said pointing up to a smirking, waving son, “and russ is here.” he said, pointing to his other side.

Y/n moved her head to see one of her youngest sons drawing away at a sketch pad they had gotten him. A mother was always biased, but Rus had some serious talent.

“Hello Rus.” she greeted, coming over to rub his skull affectionately.

Rus frowned and waved her away, not appreciating the distraction from the epic fantasy drawing he was working on.

Chuckling, Y/n felt her mood shift as Edge and Black came running around the corner, hurling rocks at each other. When they saw her, they immediately froze, before their arms simply let go of the armful of pebbles that were both carrying. Crooking her finger at them, Y/n did her best ‘Mum’ look and pointed to the ground before her, summoning them to their doom.

“You didn’t tell me where Red is, Sans.” She murmured as two of her sons approached her like they were walking death row.

“huh? whelp, i guess i don’t i must have forgotten that or something.” he grinned, not daring to open his eyes.

Sighing, Y/n placed a hand to her stomach, muttering under her breath, “Oh please be girls! Anything but another pair of boys!”

Sans was still chuckling as Edge and Black stood before her, keeping their distance from her and from each other.

Folding her arms, she asked, “So, who wants to go first?”

Apparently, she hadn’t learned her lessons with her husband and son, because suddenly, they were both explaining how it wasn’t their faults but the other’s.

“Boys.” she snapped, waiting for them to stop and settle once again. When they did, she glared at them, “I don’t care whose fault it was; you do NOT throw rocks. Period.”

“BUT-!”

“No buts!”

“HE HIT ME-!”

“I’ll do so much worse if I catch either of you throwing rocks ever again!”

Her anger spent, she pointed to the nearest garden, “Half an hour weeding.”

“BUT MUM!” They complained together, united for a change.

“Do you want to make it an hour?”

Grumbling, her two sons threw each other dirty looks, before crouching near the nearest garden, careful to pick out the weeds. She grinned as she watched them; who knew that the secret to a weed-free garden was child labour after all?

Still, as she watched them, she couldn’t but help but notice that, for all that those two bickered, they were obviously each other’s favourite sibling. No matter what one was doing, the other wouldn’t be far behind.

Now, to find her most mischief, little troublemaker.

Fortunately, she always came prepared.

“Oh dear,” she said, in a staged voice as she pulled out a small satchel containing mustard, “I have this mustard and nothing to put it on. Guess I can always throw it away.”

She waited, frowning when she didn’t feel the familiar sensation of her trouble making just appearing on her back.

 _‘Damn, he’s getting smarter!_ ’ she cursed, thinking on how she was going to lure him out now.

An idea formed, but it would require child cruelty.

Walking over to Edge and Black, Y/n swung back on her heels, humming happily as she watched them work.

“WE’RE WORKING, WE’RE WORKING!” Black complained, looking over his shoulder at her.

“I can see that.” She grinned, “You’re both doing a _weedly_ good job.”

Her boys gapped at her, before exclaiming, “MUM!”

Still smiling, she continued, “You know I love you both from the top of my head _tomatoes_ , right?”

“MUM!!”

She could hear snickering from over by the apple tree, but it was the snort that escaped a little mischief maker from the nearby bushes she was more interested in.

“What? Don’t you think I’m _berry_ cool?”

“MUM!!!” They both snapped, hurling their pulled weeds away from them.

The snorting around her increased as she walked slowly towards the bush that was moving despite there being no wind. “I’m sorry I’m not as good as your uncle. I guess I need to learn by _trowel and error_.”

Red broke out in hysterical laughter as he watched his brothers bury their heads into the garden. So it was, he didn't actually notice his mother until she was picking him up from the garden, holding him to her smirking face.

“Hello, Red.”

He gulped.

“You wouldn’t know anything about the window, would you?”

As he opened his mouth, she placed a finger on his sharp teeth, stopping him.

“Think very carefully about what you want your answer to be.”

He started sweating, “i, um, i don’t know what you mean?”

“Really?” She looked him over, “You don’t seem that confident with your answer.”

“i’m-i’m just nervous, is all.”

She kissed the top of his skull, watching smugly as his cheeks flushed a glowing red. “Don’t lie to me.”

He would not look her in the eyes, insisting, “i’m not lyin’!”

She began ticking him, lowering him to the ground as she went right for his underarms. As he squealed and snorted under her onslaught, she grinned manically as she shouted playfully, “Confess!”

“i-*snort!*i ain’t sayin’ nothing!’”

“Confess!”

“n-no!”

She began kissing him, blowing raspberries on his neck and next to his ear holes.

Screaming like a little girl, Red, cried out as red tears gathered in the corner of his eyes, “uncle! uncle!”

“i already helped ya kid. you brought this on yourself.” Sans called out, laughing with Red’s brothers as they enjoyed a free show. There was also the distinct sound of hands getting high fived off in the distance.

“alright, alright!” screamed Red, wrestling with his mother by this point, “i confess! t’was me! i done it!”

She eased up, but lifted him up in her arms, keeping him trapped in a hug, “What did you do?”

“i smashed the window with my magic!” he grabbed the side of her face, “but you should have seen them! they keep saying sh- stuff about how there was no chance they weren’t going to miss the ball! they were beggin’ for it!”

She narrowed her eyes at him, “You’re going to apologise to your father and to Blueberry, and then, if they’ve already cleaned up your mess, you’re going to do any chore that they don’t want to do.”

Red snorted, “there ain’t nothin’ those two don’t like doing.”

“I guess you’re right.” Her smiled widen, “Then I guess you’re going to have to help Blueberry do all of his chores today then.”

His eyes shrank, “all of them??”

“Yep.” She brought her struggling son with her over to Papyrus and Blueberry, who were back from packing away the brooms and dustpan. “Done already?”

“Yes.” they said, still looking downtrodden.

Kissing Blueberry’s skull then her husbands, Y/n stood back and watched them burst out into a glowing blush, but for completely different reasons. Red was struggling in her arms now, wanting no part in this kissing fest.

She handed Blueberry his younger brother, who looked surprised.

“WHY ARE YOU HANDING RED TO ME MUM?”

“Well, I found out a certain someone,-” she eyed Red meaningfully, “was responsible for altering the ball’s projection and smashing the window.”

“I KNEW IT!” He exclaimed, staring at Red’s sulking expression in disbelief, “HOW COULD YOU??”

“I WAS JUST PLAYING’AROUND! I DIDN’T ACTUALLY MEAN TO BREAK THE WINDOW!” Red said, sulkily.

“To make up for you having to clean his mess, he’s agreed to spend the whole day with you, helping you with all your chores.”

Blueberry’s eyes shifted into stars, “REALLY?!?”

She smiled, “Really.” She eyed Red, “Isn’t that right, Red.”

Red muttered darkly under his breath.

“I didn’t hear-“

“i said alright!”

Grinning, Y/n watched her Blueberry spin his brother around, laughing his little heart out.

“gonna hurl!” Red warned, looking nauseous in his brother's arms.

Blueberry stopped and quickly put his smaller brother on his back, happily chatting to him as he ran back into the house, “FIRST, WE’RE GOING TO CLEAN ALL THE PET’S TANKS AND CAGES! THEN, I’M GOING TO CLEAN YOUR ROOM, AND YOU’RE GOING TO HELP!”

“my room is not one of your chores!”

“IT IS NOW!”

“YOU KNOW,” Papyrus said, wrapping an arm around her waist, “RED’S JUST GOING TO SPEND THE ENTIRE TIME SLEEPING ON BLUEBERRY’S BACK?”

She laughed and lend more into her husbands brace, “I know, but it does the boys good if they spend more time with someone other than their twin. Just look at Edge and Black.”

“I WOULDN’T CALL THAT A GOOD THING.” Papyrus said, looking uneasy. Then his gaze softened as his hand left her waist and came to rest on her baby bump, “STILL, I HOPE THEY’RE JUST AS WELCOMING TO THEIR NEW BROTHERS OR SISTERS AS THEY’VE BEEN EVERY OTHER TIME.”

She gently pulled his skull towards her, kissing his teeth sensually as a shudder travelled along his spine. “I’m sure they will,” she breathed against his teeth as a heavy blush crossed his cheeks, “after all, we have the greatest family of them all, don’t we?”

He spun her around and dipped her back, kissing her deeply on the front balcony. Even after all these years, he still managed to surprise her, and literally kiss her breath away.

“Gross!” complained all her children, who watched their parents making out as each burst out in their own unique blushing colours.

Sans merely napped on, his natural smile fitting his face better long since he stopped pretending.

~*~

Y/n was struggling to move, struggling to breathe, as she rested on what she already knew was going to be her deathbed.

Death was easy for her to accept; she was very old now. She had lived a full life, filled with so much love and joy. Her children had grown up to be such fine adults, and she felt truly content, knowing the part she played and making sure the world would be safe for mixed children like them.

Still, she knew it was not easy for them. They were close to immortals themselves, with long, beautiful lives to look forward to as they enriched other people lives, as much as they enriched hers. To them, death as a terrible accident, a tragic event. Something quick, sudden, with no way of preparing.

So unlike watching their mother growing weaker and weaker in these final months.

Part of her wondered if they had all been in denial about this eventuality; she suspected that many of her children thought she would live forever, always present, always in their lives. Only, that wasn’t possible for humans. Not for her.

Dying was always easier than watching it happen to loved ones, and she didn’t envy them. She wished, with her whole soul, that there was some way she could ease their pain, lessen the devastation that screamed clear with every sob and tear that fell down their cheeks. She had lost track how often she had watched her children crying in this private hospital room now, how many times her sheets had to be changed as her children clung to her and screamed their heartbreaking sorrow into her open arms, tears soaking through all the layers of blankets on her.

Papyrus….Papyrus was a beacon of strength, of optimism and comfort to their children, offering them his strength and love in these final months. He stayed by her side every second, never leaving, never changing from the skeleton she fell in love with, even as he looked slightly older now than when he did when they first met. He was the bridge between her and her children, easing them into opening their hearts and souls to her and to make their more stubborn children break down the walls that would only hurt them later. He helped them, as he always had done, but now he helped them on her behalf, supporting them on his own as he would have to continue doing so soon.

Only, she knew, knew as no one but his bounded soulmate could, how close he was to crumbling. They had spoken long and hard about this day; she wanted him to find love again. He- he doubted he could, claiming that his soul was bounded to hers....and that pieces of him would die when she did. They compromised, with Papyrus saying that he wouldn’t go looking for love, but neither would he dwell on her memories. He promised her he would always live in the present and look after their children. She knew that he would; it was looking after himself that truly worried her.

Especially today, when they planned to take her off the life support machine.

Papyrus had stood back of the room, watching with distance eyes as each of their children had said their goodbyes. She had never cried so much in her life, or ever felt more loved. What moved her the most was how they cried as a family; none of them was ashamed to cry in front of the others, nor did they shrug off the support they freely offered each other. As a family, they grieved for the upcoming death of one of their own, and, as a family, they supported each other through their own grief.

When they left, Papyrus came shakily over to her side, sitting as far from the machine he promised he would switch off.

“You don’t have to.” Y/n breathed faintly, holding his shaking hands with her old, fail ones, “We can always ask a nurse. They-they said they could do it.”

Tears flowed silently down Papyrus cheeks as his whole body shuddered. Shaking his head quickly, he kept his head bowed as the hands grasping her tightened, “N-NO! I-I WANT TO-TO BE TH-THE ONE WHO-…..WHO-“

At long last, he broke. Her tower of optimism and the source of her strength broke, reducing him to a wailing mess of a skeleton who howled his grief, sorrow and despair into her side.

Only, she found strength in his grief, in his love that he was already morning over. Strength enough to offer him now.

Pulling her hands free, she shakily reached for him, clasping his skull between them. “Papyrus,” she cooed softly, “I-I love you, with my entire soul.”

She thought about everything they had ever been through, forcing her love upon him as she tried to reach him through so much grief.

He lifted his head long enough to bury his face into her stomach, twisting the sheets under his hands as his raw, overwhelming emotions robbed him of any ability to speak.

So she spoke for him.

“I know that you love me too.” She caressed the back of his head, looking lovingly upon this skull she could have picked out in her sleep, “I know you’re sad, but-but I want you to promise me you’ll look after yourself when I’m gone.”

He shook his head in her lap on a loop, refusing to accept anything she was saying.

But she wasn’t going to accept that. This was too important, perhaps the most important thing she could do.

With what strength she had, she dragged his skull up to her, place his forehead to hers so that they could watch each other cry. “Promise me Papyrus!”

“I-I-“ His face crumpled as he hugged her, pepping her lips with kisses. She tried peppering him back, she couldn’t match his energy, or his desperation. Soon, he dived for the crook of her neck and wept.

“I PROMISE!” He sobbed, “I PROMISE Y/N!”

Relief, joy and such gratitude flooded her, and she knew he would experience that sense as well as she began sobbing in earnest. They wept into each other’s arms, each wishing the moment would never end, yet both knew, that is must.

When enough time had passed and their sobs had settled to a numb misery, Papyrus sat back up, looking at the machine that was keeping his soulmate alive.

“IS-IS IT TIME?” he whispered.

“….Yes.”

Papyrus bowed his head once again, but rather than give in to his grief, he found the strength to give his mate this final peace she had asked for.

The nurses had told him what buttons to flip.

With a final kiss on her forehead and one for each her eyes, he said his final goodbye.

“I LOVE YOU.” he breathed upon her.

She smiled as she closed her eyes, “And I love you, my true soulmate.”

Papyrus reached for the machine, only to find another bony hand stopping him.

“SAN-SANS??” Papyrus gasped.

Y/n opened her eyes to see Sans standing by her bed, his cat ears fallen to the side of his head as his hand blocked Papyrus from flipping the button he needed to give her peace.

“Sans?” she whispered in disbelief.

His eyes filled with tears, but he forced himself to grin widely, moving to stroke her hair, “hey there kid. s-sorry i’m late.”

“YOUR TIMING COULD NOT BE WORSE SANS.” His brother scolded, actually glaring at his brother.

But Sans shook his head, “this is important, paps. i-i wouldn’t be interpreting if it wasn’t.”

He took a long breath, before opening his eyes to gaze at the pair, “there-there’s a way to save y/n. to-to keep her with you forever, brother.”

“THERE IS??” Papyrus asked, daring to hope.

Sans nodded, a great weight falling from his shoulders as he explained, “you could absorb her soul paps. she’d-she’d live inside you and you-“ he looked away, “you’d change. be-becoming something new. an amalgamation of your two souls.” he looked back, “a monster-human hybrid with unfathomable power.”

“A MONSTER-HUMAN HYBRID?” Papyrus whispered in awe.

“Why-why is that so special?” she asked, looking between the two brothers and sensing there was something huge they weren't openly discussing.

Sans leaned forward and pattered her arm, “y/n, a monster hybrid is something we only have legends of. they're supposed to be powerful creatures…but the price of becoming on is merging everything you are to create something new.”

“Sounds like a soul bound.” she said, rubbing the spot her soul hid fondly.

“it’s more….absolute than a soul bond. you’d-you’d cease to be two individuals. you’d-you’d become just one. no more y/n, no more papyrus.”

There was a moment of silence.

“WHY DID YOU WAIT THIS LONG TO SUGGEST THIS?” she asked, feeling betrayed that she didn’t get more time to think about this.

Sans met her gaze determinedly, but it quickly waved as he looked up to see his brother watching him.

“be-because if you two do this, i’d-i’d be losing paps forever.”

He bowed his head as tears fell from his eyes, “i-i love you kid, you know that i do, but-but if you guys did this, i’d not only lose you, but-but i’d lose my only brother too. i couldn’t- i-i just can’t- i-i-!” he took a shuddering breath, that did little to help him regain his composure, “but-but i know how much you mean to him, kid. you-you’re passing-“ A sob escaped him, breaking all his compose as he collapsed on her bed, “i’m going to lose him too, no matter what you choose!”

Y/n rubbed Sans’s head affectionately, realising the gravity of him willing offering this information to them.

Looking to Papyrus, she watched as he lent across and added his own hand to his brother’s weeping skull, before looking at her.

“I-I……I DON’T KNOW WHAT I WANT.”

“Would you accept my soul into yours? Forever changing us into one?” she asked, softly.

Papyrus looked to his older brother crying by her side, to Y/n herself. He seemed to find resolution in her eyes and that strength flowed to her.

“I WOULD.” He cupped the side of her face, “BUT I AM ALSO WILLING TO GIVE YOU YOUR PEACE. WHATEVER YOU CHOSE, MY SOULMATE, I WILL DO.”

~*~

Y/n gasped once again as she came to her surrounding, back by the beachside and back with Papyrus by her side, Ink grinning at them as Sans laid on the ground, dazed and no longer feline in anyway.

“What happened??” She exclaimed, touching her youthful face, “Where am I??”

“Oh dear, will you look at the time?” Ink grinned cheekily, looking at a wrist with no watch on it, “It’s time for me to go!”

He strolled happily back over to the ink puddle that was nearly gone, twirling his paintbrush he walked. Standing in it, he waved happily over to Y/n, Papyrus, and Sans watching him go. “Until next year!”

The ink puddle shrank to a pinpoint spot, then, as it began drying smaller than the human eye could see, Ink just vanished from sight.

“CAN SOMEONE EXPLAIN WHAT IT WAS I SAW?” Papyrus asked, looking thoroughly confused.

“Me too.” Y/n added.

Sans picked himself up with a groan, “at least you two didn’t have to deal with a tail sticking right out of your-“

 

Next chapter is called: Dating Planning!


	18. Dating Planning!

Papyrus had run all the way home, texting Y/n about all of his wonderful plans he had for her and their first ever date! Of course, he made sure to never actually tell her anything; the key was to intrigue her, after all. And she should be intrigued, and delighted! This, he vowed!

Sans had texted him about where he had gone and if he was alright as he finally made it home. Between fetching out notepads and booting up his computer to start researching, he had texted back:

 **THE GREAT PAPYRUS!:**     SANS! YOU WERE RIGHT, ALL I HAD TO DO WAS TALK TO HER! EVEN BETTER, I ASKED HER OUT FOR A DATE AND SHE SAID YES!!!

Laughing, Papyrus allowed himself to bask in the simple joy of the accomplishment, playing the memory of holding Y/n in his arms over and over….till he remembered Undyne and Alphys.

 **THE GREAT PAPYRUS!:** DON’T TELL ANYONE ELSE!

 **sans:**       don’t worry bro, i’ve got your back. talk to ya when i get home.

 **THE GREAT PAPYRUS!:** OF COURSE!

The moment he sent off that text, things suddenly felt a lot more serious, more real. Sans has always been his assurance that he truly was as great as he knew he was….even on days when he didn’t exactly believe that himself. Seeing his brother getting along so well with Y/n, especially when comparing how he use to be, made him think Y/n really the mate of his dreams. After Sans pulled that stunt of his and the smug speech that followed, Papyrus knew that not only did he have to act, but he also had Sans’s blessing!

That…that was important to him.

Heck, seeing their two group of friends made Papyrus further believe that everything was so perfect and right that things

Papyrus shook himself out of thoughts; he was much too important to be wasting his precious time daydreaming!

With renewed energy, Papyrus threw himself fulling into his task to thinking of the Perfect Date.

~*~

“bro? are you-?”

Sans stopped his question midway as he entered his brother’s room slowly, his mouth staying open in surprise.

The room was absolutely covered in scraps of paper and empty notepads, the walls around the computer covered in hastily written up notes with Papyrus himself sitting crossed legged on the floor, his jacket flung to his bed and his clothes dishevelled.

“SANS!” Papyrus called out happily and relieved, “THANK THE STARS YOU’RE FINALLY HOME!”

“i was only an hour behind you.” he pointed out, realising that all of this had occurred in just under that hour.

Papyrus waved him off, “NEVER MIND THAT. COME IN! I NEED YOUR HELP!”

“my help?” Sans replied, closing the door behind him as he sat on the edge of Papyrus’s bed, “what can i do to help the dating expert?”

“A LOT!” Papyrus clung to his skull, “THE MORE IDEAS I HAVE, THE LESS I KNOW WHICH TO GO WITH! I TRIED COMBING ALL THE VERY BEST IDEAS, BUT I DON’T KNOW HOW TO TEACH A HORSE TO WATERSKI IN TIME!”

Sans burst out laughing before he had a chance to stop himself.

“IT’S NOT FUNNY SANS! THIS DATE HAS TO BE ABSOLUTELY, ONE HUNDRED PERCENT PERFECT!”

“it will be bro.” Sans said, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye and trying hard not to laugh again, “but maybe tone it down? less *snicker* water skiing horses?”

“BUT THAT DOESN’T TELL ME WHAT I SHOULD DO!” He exclaimed.

“what about your dating manual? doesn’t that have a few things in it?”

Papyrus pushed aside the many balls of crumpled paper covering it, lifting it up to show Sans, “WHAT, THIS THING?” He dropped it back to the ground, “I STARTED THERE! THEN I WENT ONLINE AND WHAT STARTED AS JUST CLARIFYING SOMETHING QUICKLY LEAD ME DOWN A RABBIT HOLE WITH NO ANSWERS!” He waved a frantic hand at his computer, “SO MANY DIFFERENT THINGS TO DO, TO NOT TO DO, MUCH OF IT CONFLICTING WITH SOMETHING ELSE I READ UP ON!” He threw his hands up, “I DON’T EVEN KNOW ANY MORE!”

Sans clapped his hands together, drawing his brother’s attention back to him and the now, “bro, look at me? you’re going to be fine.”

“BUT-!”

“you’ve got this.”

Papyrus searched his brother's eyes desperately, but when all he got back was confident assurance and that mischievous grin of his, he sighed heavily, “IF YOU SAY SO.”

“best advice i have is just keep it simple, bro.” Sans offered, smiling softly at him.

Papyrus clicked his tongue, “BUT THAT WILL HARDLY SHOW HER JUST HOW MUCH SHE MEANS TO ME!”

“she strikes me as the type who would rather like it if things were simple and quite.”

“SHE IS, BUT WHO KNOWS IF THAT’S JUST BECAUSE SHE’S NEVER HAD SOMEONE TAKE HER OUT IN SUCH A GRAND MANNER THAT SHE DESERVES!” He looked helplessly up at his brother, “SHE DESERVES THE VERY BEST BROTHER.”

Sans was watching Papyrus carefully. “…….you really like her, don’t you?”

“…..I-I THINK I LOVE HER, ACTUALLY.

Sans eyes grew wide. “you, um….you actually using that word now, are ya?”

He nodded, “I TOLD Y/N THAT I LOVED HER.”

Sans chocked on his shock, “wow!.....you two really had a conversation after all, huh?”

“YOU SAID TO.” Papyrus pointed out to him.

“yeah, but i wasn’t expecting so much….confessing.”

“WHY ARE YOU SURPRISED?” Papyrus gestured to him, “YOU HELPED ME FIGURE IT OUT!”

Sans rubbed the back of his head, “it’s still a little shocking to see the leap you went from the beginning of the night to the end of it.” He lowered his hand and looked carefully at his brother, “how did she take it?”

“SHE-…..”

Papyrus remembered the look of disbelief and pain that crossed her face when he confessed. Her insistence that no one could love her.

“I DON’T THINK SHE BELIEVES ME.” Papyrus admitted, sadly.

Sans shrugged, “she agreed to go on a date with you, so she’s at least interested in ya bro.”

“YEAH.” Papyrus brightened, “YEAH! WHICH IS WHY THIS DATE HAS TO BE PERFECT! IF MY CONFESSION DIDN’T CONVINCE HER, THE PERFECT DATE PLANNED BY ME WILL SURELY DO IT!”

Sans chuckled as he stood up, “sounds like you’re on the right track.”

“BUT THAT STILL DOESN’T HELP ME!” Papyrus gestured to all the notes surrounding him, “I STILL HAVE NO IDEA WHICH IDEA I SHOULD GO WITH!”

Sans shrugged, “you two are still doing morning runs right? why don’t you use those to suss out what ideas she likes better by dropping hints?”

Papyrus stared at him.

“SANS…..THAT’S BRILLIANT!”

Springing up to his feet as he flung balls of paper into the air, Papyrus tackled hugged his brother, lifting him up and spinning him in exuberance.

“YOU ARE THE GREATEST BROTHER I COULD HAVE EVER ASKED FOR!!”

Sans blushed, looking pleased as Papyrus came to a stop, nuzzling him, “oh geez paps. stop it.”

“NEVER!”

~*~

In the end, Papyrus didn’t sleep that night. He was too excited/ busy, brainstorming every idea he had and listing them from Perfect to the Absolutely Perfect! A quick look at the time and then an even quick change of clothes, Papyrus ran to Y/n’s shop.

It occurred to him that she might be too excited to go for their run this morning, so he called her and asked. She said yes (making his soul brighten once again) and he spent the time it took her to come outside jogging up and down the street. He was too excited to stand still! Seeing her in the morning light, knowing that they had a date planned, it was all he could do to stop himself from picking her up and kissing her again!

Still, she seemed like she was a bit more groggy this morning, so he restrained himself to just beaming down at her, chatting happily to her in a world that was their own in these early hours.

Papyrus had asked her if she was free with Saturday _(‘I NEVER ASKED HER WHAT DAY SHE WOULD LIKE TO GO OUT ON A DATE WITH ME?? *MENTAL FACE PALM*),_ and it was so cute to see her blushing and even better when she said she was free! For him and their date!

With a time planned, he began his covert plan to figure out which, out of all his plans, she would be most interested in going for. With each idea, he saw her eyes getting larger and larger with awe, and he felt so proud of himself for all his brilliant ideas.

He was actually happy to say goodbye to this time; he had plenty of things he was eager to get started on!

His performance at work that week suffered. If he wasn’t fleshing out the details to various date ideas he was pursuing at once in case the first, second, third and fourth idea fell through on his waiter notebook, he was lost in his daydreams in between the various personal phone calls he was making around town. Pete teased him, asking questions like ‘What he was giggling about between lovesick sighs?’, but Papyrus knew that Pete had no idea he was in love AND had a date! Only he, Sans and Y/n knew that.

It was halfway through the week when he had confirmation that he could, indeed, hire the horse-drawn carriage to pull right up to the front of her shop! It was a really grand one too; the human who was showing him the carriage was telling him how it was based off a model they used in a princess movie!

“THIS IS PERFECT!” Papyrus exclaimed, marvelling at how all the gold made it look even shinier in the light, the pure white horses seemed proud and regal and easy to train for another idea he had after this date.

The human next to him grinned, “I’m glad you think so.” He pointed to the mannequin behind them that was one of the fanciest uniforms Papyrus had ever seen, “Your lady will be greeted by a team of professionals, who will cater to both of your whims as they transport you to….a boat?”

“A PRIVATE BOAT, WITH IT’S OWN RESTAURANT AND BAND, COMPLETE WITH A DANCE FLOOR AND A WHOLE LOT OF FIREWORKS!”

The human whistled in appreciation, “Fancy!”

“INDEED!”

“And you’re sure you want the horse and carriages on the boat?”

Papyrus nodded, “THERE’S PLENTY OF ROOM FOR THEM.”

The human shrugged, “As long as you pay the deposit in advance and sign our agreement, the carriage, horses, and servants are yours for one, romantic evening.”

Papyrus beamed, looking pleased.

“Have you got your outfit planned?”

“BUT OF COURSE HUMAN!” Papyrus beamed, “I WILL BE THE MOST FANCY I HAVE EVER BEEN!”

“Will your mate or whatever, be in a fancy dress?”

Papyrus’s eyes light up, “I SPARED NO EXPENSE! I PICKED HER DRESS OUT MYSELF! WE’RE GOING TO BE SO BEAUTIFUL AND IT’S GOING TO BE THE MOST ROMANTIC NIGHT OF HER LIFE!”

“Sounds really nice.”

“WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE??” Papyrus already had his phone out, scrolling through his pictures.

The human shrugged, “Sure…I guess.”

Papyrus watched as the human looked at his photos, clearly impressed.

“She’s going to look like a princess.” The human looked back up at him, grinning, “with you, her Prince Charming.”

Papyrus puffed out his chest and posed, “OF COURSE! I AM VERY DASHING, HANDSOME AND CHARMING!”

“Prince Dashing, Handsome and Charming then.” Laughed the human, “Showing his princess the most romantic night of her life.”

“MY…PRINCESS?”

Papyrus looked back down at his phone, at the picture of the dress he had hired out. Every time he pictured Y/n in this dress, he would get this helplessly goofy smile and a light blush across his cheeks, his soul singing so loud that he was sure other monsters could hear him (if not the humans.) Y/n was going to be a princess in this dress, with him, her prince….Somehow, thinking that, thinking of Y/n as a princess…..didn’t sound right.

She deserved everything he had and more; any title, any present, and any event dedicated to her amazingness. He wanted to shower her with every gift, travel to any lengths to get her whatever she asked for. Any time she spent with him he treasured as priceless; it only made sense that he at least tried to pay her back however he could for just being her and in his life.

In his mind, he found himself comparing the two images; of Y/n in this beautiful, elegant dress, hair down up with makeup that only highlighted how already beautiful she was to him with a huge, bright smile…and a Y/n in her sweater, curled up on the couch with her hair down, no makeup with that subtle small smile she did whenever she glanced up at him.

He knew which one he liked more, and more importantly, which one she would be happier with. In his excitement, he had yet again forgotten who this date was about and what she would like.

“I’M SORRY HUMAN. I’VE CHANGED MY MIND.”

The human looked quickly over to him, “What?”

But Papyrus was already leaving, hurrying for the exit as he made started making phone calls to cancel everything it had taken him so much time and painstaking convincing others to organise in the first place.

He was now back to having no plan, but Papyrus now knew he had been going about this the wrong way. This night, this date, was about Y/n and him just wanting to show her how much she mattered to him.

~*~

Papyrus stood nervously at the front of Y/n’s shop as the sun set on the night of their date. He hadn’t been able to sleep last night and if how he felt was any indication, he would never be able to sleep ever again after this.

He felt so underprepared! He felt foolish, really!

_‘SHE’S NOT GOING TO LIKE THIS! SHE’S GOING TO THINK I DIDN’T PUT ANY EFFORT INTO THIS OR THAT I DIDN’T THINK SHE WAS WORTH MUCH! I SHOULD HAVE AT LEAST HIRED A CARRIAGE TO CARRY HER TO THE BEACH!!’_

Sans’s words of reassurance came back to him and he listened to them like a lifeline.

_‘she likes you bro and she likes hanging out with you. she’s going to see how much you put in your soul into this date bro, and she’s going to love it. trust me’_

He wanted to. He really, really wanted this to work, to show her how much she mattered to him and….he wanted her to like him too. More than just a friend.

If this worked, if he could get another chance to prove that he loved her and to convince her she was not only deserving of being loved but that he wanted to be the to provide her with all of the love she deserved, then he would spend the rest of his life doing just that.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he failed to see Y/n come out of her shop in her nice, comfortable clothes that he loved seeing her in, looking at the tea lights he had set up hours before.

Panic made him call out to her before he could admire how nice she looked.

“Y/N! WAIT!”

She screamed and he felt his soul seize up. Quickly, he ran over to her.

“I-I DIDN’T SEE YOU COME OUT!” he pointed to the street lamp out the front of her store, “I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU THERE FOR A WHILE NOW! I-I DIDN’T MEAN TO SCARE YOU.”

“I-I’m okay.” She said, breathlessly, placing a hand over her racing heart.

He tittered on the edge of helping her and giving her space, settling for standing off to the side and twisting his hands more. The last thing he wanted to do was make it even worse than it already was!

“SORRY.”

“No, no! It’s fine, really.” she replied, still looking so scared and nervous.

He dropped his head, “IT’S ALL GONE SO WRONG SO QUICKLY.”

He was pulled out of his spiral by a soft, gentle hand patting his arm.  “If any of your plans ever have to rely upon me not getting startled, then they’re doomed to failure. I promise Papyrus, it’s okay.”

Hearing that did make him feel better, but it was more about the fact that she was trying to comfort him that made him return her smile. “THANK YOU.”

She blushed, “N-no problem.”

Papyrus found his hand on hers with no memory of putting it there, but he was in no rush to let go of it any time soon. Instead, he pulled her hand off him so he could hold it between his hands instead. Y/n looked up at him, her eyes lost, hopeful and so very beautiful.

“Pap-Papyrus?”

He beamed, “LET US CONTINUE, SHALL WE?”

~*~

Papyrus, for the first time in his life, didn’t want to talk. All he wanted to do was listen to all the little sounds Y/n made as he walked her down the lit path that leads to the beach. She tried asking questions, trying to ruin his surprise at her, but he was having none of that.

She was just going to have to wait….they both were. She wanted to know what lay in store for her and he wanted to know how she would react to those plans. Would she like what he thought she would like? Would she be insulted or might she not get it? Would that be better or worse?

_‘she likes you bro and she likes hanging out with you. she’s going to see how much you put in your soul into this date bro, and she’s going to love it. trust me’_

Papyrus straightened his shoulders and keep his doubts at bay.

When they did eventually arrive, he watched Y/n as she took in the sight of the bench they first met up, wondering if she remembered it? He certainly did. He liked to think that if someone switched these benches around, he’d be able to pick this one out in a crowd of thousands.

She took a sigh of relief and he could feel some of the tension leaving her through the hand he still held. Happy that she was relaxing a bit and therefore would be more comfortable and happier, Papyrus rubbed the back of her hand affectionally, before eagerly pulling her towards the bench.

“THIS WAY!” he said, excitedly. Gosh, he was so nervous!

“THIS IS YOUR SEAT, Y/N!” he said as he guided her to one side of the table he set up beforehand (glad that it was all still here!), refusing to let go of her hand till she was sitting, whereupon he hurried to the other side, sitting down quickly himself.

Sitting there, watching her face in the dusk light with the candlelight softening her features, he got lost gazing at her. He felt calmer, more assured of himself and confident with who he was as a person with her so close to him and him alone. Being with her, here, at this moment, made everything else in the world seem…perfect.

“Um, Papyrus?”

“HMM?”

“Is-is there anything else that’s supposed to be happening?”

He continued to stare at her for a moment, before he remembered what he was doing here. “OH! THAT’S RIGHT!”

He quickly fetched out his phone, going through a playlist before hitting a button. He had done extensive research about ideal romantical dates when dating a human, and the atmosphere was key to everything he had read. While it wasn’t the band he had originally hired (he assumed Y/n wouldn’t like it if they were strangers here she didn’t know), he did hope this would work just as well.

She looked up from his phone’s screen to him “Is the song’s title actually called ‘Beautiful Romantic Dinner Music’?”

“IT SURE IS!” Papyrus patted the front of his jacket where he was keeping his old dating book in case something went terribly wrong and he needed advice, “I’VE MEMORISED EXACTLY HOW A DATE IS SUPPOSED TO GO!”

“You’re following a plan? As in, you’re getting your advice from a book?” Her smile softened, “Papyrus, you don’t need to follow someone’s advice like that.”

He cocked his head to the side, confused, “BUT Y/N, WE’RE MAKING A BOOK THAT TELLS PEOPLE EXACTLY HOW TO COOK.”

“Yeah, but books like those are normally meant for people who don’t know what they’re doing.”

He looked to his hands as his confidence fell, “AND WHAT IF THAT PERSON’S ME AND DATING?”

He knew he wasn’t as smooth as his brother or any other number of monster he knew. Those other guys, they dated with ease and with confidence he just didn’t have.

He needed all the help he could get.

She looked to her hands too, “We-well then, I-I guess you should read a book to help you, but yo-you should only do the parts that make sense to you.”

“I SEE.”

That…Was it okay if he didn’t do something that all the dating advice said needed to be in the perfect date? If he only did the parts that made sense to him, then what would that date look like?

In the end, he felt even more confused and unsure of himself, so instead, he asked himself about what he thought Y/n might like.

He turned off the music.

“I THINK THIS MUSIC IS PRETTY SILLY.”

He stood up and made his way over to her side, sitting right next to her, “AND IF I COULD PICK ANY SIDE OF THE TABLE TO SIT ON, IT WOULD MOST CERTAINLY NOT BE THE ONE OPPOSITE OF YOU!”

This decision felt so natural and right, and he was glad he did move over to her side.

Otherwise, he’d have missed out Y/n blushing again. “Hee, we-welcome aboard, partner.”

He threw his arms around her, hugging her to his side, “GLAD TO BE HERE INSTEAD!”

Papyrus was reluctant to let her go, but he didn’t want her to be hungry, so he let her go to pull out the pasta he made special and just for her.

“BONE’APERTIE!”

……………Wait, what did he say? Why did he say that??

She giggled, flashing him a soul-warming smile as she said, “I guess Sans is having a bigger impact on you than you realise, Mr Pun Master!”

Papyrus gasped in mock horror, “STARS HELP ME!”

They shared a moment of laughter under the starry sky, the sound of gentle waves crashing off to the side as moon softly light up the area and the night coloured everything in cool colours.

When it ended, he leaned over and took the cover off her plate, revealing the pasta.

“I should have guessed.” She said, looking over at his plate as he took the plate of his dish.

“OF COURSE!” He said, leaning over to place the covers back into the basket, pulling both a bottle of champagne and a teapot.

He placed these things on the table, looking momentarily lost, before turning to ask her, “UM, SO WHICH DRINK WOULD YOU LIKE Y/N?”

“You brought tea?” she asked, surprised.

He nodded, beaming, “IT’S THE SAME BLEND OF TEA I MAKE FOR YOU AT THE CAFÉ!”

He had read that champagne was more appropriate for special occasions, but if he was going to stick with his original plan of showing her just how much she meant to him, then the tea he made just for her really was a perfect choice too. He thought she should have a choice though, so he ended up bringing both.

“I-I’ll take the tea.” She said, quietly.

Papyrus poured her a glass of tea in her champagne glass, before serving it to her, only to see her smiling for some reason. “WHAT IS IT?”

Y/n shook her head, keeping her eyes on the champagne glass, “Oh, it’s nothing.” She raised her glass up, “A toast?”

“THAT’S A GLASS, Y/N, NOT A PIECE OF TOAST.”

“Hee, hee. No, I mean, it’s tradition to make a toast when drinking from this kind of glasses. Something to look forward to.”

“OH!” his face lit up as he held his glass up, “I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO HAVING YOU IN EVERY MOMENT OF MY LIFE, Y/N.”

She blushed, her eyes dropping off to the side. “S-same.”

He felt his soul warm further.

There was a moment of silence as he waited for something to happen from this weird fun human thing they were doing.

“WHAT’S SUPPOSE TO HAPPEN NEXT Y/N?” He eventually asked.

“Oops, sorry Papyrus.” She clinked her glass against his before taking a sip. “There. We’re toasted.”

“REALLY?” He looked at his glass, inspecting the liquid, before shrugging and clinking his glass against hers and taking a sip as well. Drinking or eating anything he made always created a weird feedback loop where he got a shadow of his emotions from earlier, but since his state of mind was pretty much where it was when he was preparing all of this, it wasn’t too distracting. Honestly, he was kind of expecting something a little different because they toasted it. Placing his glass on the table, he rubbed his chin thoughtfully, “I DON’T FEEL ANY DIFFERENT AND THE DRINK WAS THE SAME PERFECT SELF AS IT'S ALWAYS BEEN.”

She placed her glass on the table too, “It’s not about changing the anything. It- it’s more about making a wish and hoping it comes true.”

“WE HAVE SOMETHING LIKE THAT BACK UNDERGROUND.” He said, looking at the stars as he thought about the Wishing Room back Underground.

How many years had it been since he last made a wish there? Maybe he’d go back one day to make a wish involving him and Y/n?

….Maybe he’d take her with him.

She followed his gaze, and asked softly “Like what?”

He grinned, looking over at her, “PLEASE EAT Y/N! A PERFECT DATE SHOULD ALWAYS INCLUDE GOOD FOOD, AND THIS FOOD IS THE BEST I’VE EVER PREPARED!”

Smiling, she picked up her fork and twirled some pasta onto it, taking a bite of it. He watched as she ate, with that first hum of delight lifting his soul.

“This is very good!” She said, going back for another mouthful.

He could see himself blushing in the low light and feel how big his smile was at her praise and delight. As they ate together, he couldn’t help but inched his way towards her, stopping when he was nearly touching her. As much as he wanted to be close to her (a greedy monster that he was), he also didn’t want her to be uncomfortable. Just as he was thinking about moving back, she surprised him by eventually leaning in towards him, pressing herself lightly to his side.

Now they were both smiling.

“WE HAD SOMETHING CALLED A WISHING ROOM, BACK UNDERGROUND.” Papyrus said softly after a while, wanting to share something of himself that he had never shared with another person before, “IT’S A CAVERN FILLED WITH THESE LITTLE GEMS THAT TWINKLE AND SPARKLE IN DARK. THE OLDER MONSTERS SAID THEY LOOKED A BIT LIKE STARS, THINGS THAT HUNG IN THE HUGE OPEN SKY THAT WERE REALLY JUST SUNS SO FAR AWAY THAT THEIR LIGHT LOOKED SMALL. NO ONE, AT LEAST, NO MONSTER BORN AFTER OUR BANISHMENT, COULD PICTURE JUST SO MUCH SPACE, SO THAT ROOM BECAME A PLACE WE WOULD GO TO IMAGINE OURSELVES IN SUCH A STRANGE WORLD WITH THAT MUCH ROOM. TO WISH FOR OTHER THINGS THAT ONLY SEEMED LIKE THEY COULD HAPPEN WITH GRANTED WISHES.”

He looked away from the stars to see Y/n watching him, before looking at her hand on his.

“I-I don’t know what to say.” She whispered sadly.

He grasped her hand, lifting it up with a smile, “BUT IT’S ALL GOOD NOW, BECAUSE I GET TO SEE THE STARS FOR MYSELF, AND I GET TO LOOK AT THEM WITH YOU! MY WISH ABOUT BECOMING CAPTAIN OF THE ROYAL GUARD DIDN’T HAPPEN, BUT SO MANY OF MY OTHER ONES DID!”

“Like what?” she asked softly.

“I WISHED THAT ALL MY FRIENDS WOULD BE FREE, WHICH THEY ARE, I WISHED THAT SANS WOULD BE HAPPY, WHICH HE KIND OF IS, AN-AND I WISHED FOR A FRIEND.” He met her eyes, “WHICH I NOW HAVE.”

She blushed, looking away, “You have plenty of friends, Papyrus. I think I meet just about all of them last night, when we were shaking hands?”

“…I DIDN’T THOUGH. NOT FOR THE LONGEST OF TIMES.”

He turned to face her, stroking the back of her hand and drawing comfort and strength from the action to be truthful with her about this deep seeded self-doubt and pain he had.

 “…I…I FOUND MAKING FRIENDS HARD TO DO. WHEN I WAS UNDERGROUND, MOST MONSTERS WERE FRIENDLY WITH EACH OTHER, INCLUDING ME, BUT NONE OF THEM LIKED HANGING OUT WITH ME WHEN I INVITED THEM OVER FOR PASTA. UNDYNE WAS ALWAYS BUSY, BUT SHE ALWAYS MADE TIME FOR OUR COOKING LESSONS, WHICH I REALLY APPRECIATED, BUT…I WAS STILL LONELY.”

He tried not thinking about all the night he sat alone in his room, how he threw himself into his puzzles not out of passion, but as a means of distracting himself from his own thoughts. He refused to think about the time Frisk turned up and how, seemingly overnight, the one person he felt he could open up to shut him out and was still hiding things from him.

He took a deep breath, “WHEN MONSTERS GOT TO THE SURFACE, I ELECTED MYSELF AS THE MASCOT OF THE MONSTER KIND (BECAUSE I’M SIMPLE GORGEOUS), BUT THEN THE KING SAID IT SHOULD BE A DIFFERENT MONSTER, ONE THAT DIDN’T REMIND THE HUMANS OF THEIR DEATH…AND THAT SORT OF STUCK WITH ME. EVERY TIME I MET A HUMAN, THEY WOULD ALWAYS SCREAM AND RUN AWAY. IF THEY DIDN’T DO THAT, THEY LAUGHED AT ME. I EVEN HAD A HUMAN TRYING TO RAM ME OFF THE SIDE OF A CLIFF ONE LATE NIGHT WHEN I WAS DRIVING!”

That had been scary! The human had been driving on the wrong side of the road and, no matter how many times he flashed his lights and beeped his horn, they hadn’t moved. He would know that human’s face from anywhere if he ever saw them again!

“That’s really horrible, Papyrus.”

“BUT YOU DIDN’T REACT LIKE THAT AT ALL.” He looked up from their hands, into her eyes, “YOU ACTUALLY WENT OUT OF YOUR WAY TO HELP ME, TO TALK TO ME LIKE I WASN’T GOING TO HURT YOU AND YOU DIDN’T LAUGH AT ME. WHEN YOU AGREED TO MEET ME AGAIN, WHEN WE MET AT THIS VERY SPOT, I THOUGHT I WOULD JUST EXPLODE FROM SHEER EXCITEMENT AND JOY!”

Her eyes dropped to their hands. “…You say that like I’m not the lucky one.” She mumbled.

He watched as her shoulders sagged and the light from her soul dim.

“Y/N.”

She didn’t look up.

“Y/N, PLEASE LOOK AT ME.”

When she didn’t and her soul continued to fade in misery and self-doubt, he raised their hands up to his face, dragging her gaze up to meet his.

“BACK AT MTT FAB-ME-LOUS, SANS MADE ME REALISE THAT I HAD FEELINGS FOR YOU THAT I DIDN’T EVEN KNOW I HAD. YOUR SISTER SAID SOMETHING ABOUT ME NEEDING TO TAKE THE FIRST STEP WITH YOU, AND I FIND MYSELF WANTING TO DO THAT ANYWAY.”

She sucked in a breath before letting out it as a shudder, her eyes leaving his.

He found himself chuckling; of course, hearing him being this honest with his feelings was making her shy and anxious.

Problem was, he was just as anxious.

Anxious about his own feelings, anxious to hear and understand hers. Anxious to make her feel better and so very anxious to have her understand just how important she had become to him without scaring her away.

Papyrus softly placed his forehead to the top of her head, whispering the words from his soul for her ears alone.

“I KNOW YOU’RE SHY. I KNOW YOU DON’T LIKE LARGE CROWDS, OR MEETING NEW PEOPLE, OR BEING THE CENTRE OF ANYONE’S ATTENTION.” He let out a sigh, “BUT I ALSO KNOW THAT I KEEP FORGETTING THESE THINGS ABOUT YOU IN MY EXCITEMENT. THAT MAKES ME FORGET VERY IMPORTANT THINGS ABOUT YOU THAT I SHOULDN’T. YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN ALL MY PLANS I HAD FOR TODAY; I WANTED TO CARRY YOU FROM YOUR SHOP IN A HORSE-DRAWN CARRIAGE! BUT I WANTED TO SHOW JUST HOW IMPORTANT YOU’VE BECOME TO ME, WHAT YOU WOULD ENJOY…HOPEFULLY.” The hand holding hers tensed up, “I WANTED THE PLACE OF OUR FIRST DATE TO BE SOMEWHERE SPECIAL, SO I PICKED THE PLACE THAT MEANS SO MUCH TO ME SINCE I MET YOU. EVERYTHING I’VE PLANNED TONIGHT, IT’S CONNECTED TO YOU. FROM EITHER THINGS WE’VE DONE TOGETHER, OR THINGS I KNOW YOU LIKE, OR THINGS I HOPE CAN CONVEY HOW I FEEL BECAUSE I DON'T THINK I KNOW HOW TO EXPLAIN IT. ALL OF IT, JUST TO SHOW YOU HOW MUCH I CARE FOR YOU.”

“But why?” She whispered, “What could you possibly see-?”

He didn’t want her finishing the end of that sentence, so he stopped her by lifting her head up, cupping her chin with his hand.

“WHY DO I LOVE YOU?” he asked, his soul dancing in his chest.

Tears gathered in the corner of her eyes, yet still, she nodded.

He smiled, as tears gathered in the corner of his eyes too, “THE TRUTH IS I-I DON’T KNOW WHY OR EVEN IF I DO LOVE YOU. WHAT IS LOVE AND WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE?? MY DATING BOOK DIDN’T HAVE AN ANSWER, AND I HAVE NOTHING BUT QUESTIONS! WHY DO I FEEL SO HAPPY WHEN I SEE YOU? WHY DO I FEEL SO RELAXED AND SAFE WHEN YOU’RE NEAR ME? WHY DO MY ARMS FEEL LONELY IF YOU’RE NOT IN THEM?”

He brought her in for a hug, his chin resting on top of her head.

“I-I DON’T HAVE ANY ANSWERS Y/N. MAY-MAYBE IT’S BECAUSE I’VE GOT A SILLY SOUL, AN IMPULSIVE, SILLY, HANDSOME SOUL, AND IT’S MAKING ME SEEM FOOLISH AND NAÏVE AND SO INCREDIBLY HANDSOME. PROBLEM IS, I DON’T KNOW HOW ELSE TO LIVE MY LIFE. I-I’VE ALWAYS FOLLOWED MY SOUL, AND IT'S TELLING ME IT LIKES YOU, Y/N.”

“Y-you said something about it singing.” Her voice quivering into his suit, tightening the hug she had around him.

He nodded and thought back on all the times his soul had acted strangely around her, marvelling how long it had taken him to realise why it was doing that, “FOR A LONG TIME, I DIDN’T EVEN REALISE THAT IT WAS DOING THAT; I JUST THOUGHT I WAS EXCITED TO MEET A NEW FRIEND! BUT SEEING YOU WITH MATT, THINKING THAT YOUR SOUL BELONGED TO ANOTHER, THAT SHOOK ME, AND YET, I STILL DIDN’T KNOW. IT TOOK SOMEONE FAR LESS IMPULSIVE THAN ME TO GIVE ME A HINT, AND ONCE I DID, I WANTED TO GET EVEN CLOSER TO YOU.”

Papyrus wanted to show her his soul, to prove that he wasn’t lying. Even if she didn’t understand souls and wouldn’t understand what she saw, he wanted her to see him as he truly was. Showing your soul, in monster culture, was such a personal and intimate thing to do. It required full trust and complete honesty; everything that you were was laid out bare to the other person. If they accepted, if they held your soul, you were accepted and loved with no doubts.

But….now wasn’t the time for that. He didn’t want to overwhelm her.

One day, if she accepted….once she understood the significance, he would show her his soul.

And, perhaps, later on, she might show him hers.

For now, he’d settle for knowing her now, without his silly soul getting in the way. Moving his head to the side of her head, he whispered, “I-I WANT TO GET TO KNOW YOU, BETTER THAN ANYONE EVER HAS. I WANT TO KNOW EXACTLY WHAT MAKES YOU SMILE AND DO THOSE THINGS ALL THE TIME. I WANT TO KNOW WHAT MAKES YOU CRY AND KEEP YOU FROM THOSE THINGS FOREVER. I WANNA KNOW WHAT YOUR FAVOURITE SONG IS AND SING IT FOR YOU EVERY DAY, AND COOK YOUR FAVOURITE MEAL ON DAYS WHEN A GOOD MEAL WILL LIFT YOUR SPIRITS. I WANT TO HOLD YOU FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE AND NEVER LET GO….BUT MOSTLY, I JUST WANT YOU TO BE HAPPY.”

She leaned back to look up at him, the moon lighting up her wondrous eyes, “WHAT DO YOU WANT, Y/N?”

“I-I don’t know.” Her grip on the back of his shirt tightened, “This is moving so fast and I’m feeling all these things that don’t make sense to me. I-I know that I like being with you Papyrus. I like the idea that I get to keep knowing you for the rest of my life, that we get to do even more incredible things together. I love every moment I’ve had with you and yet I keep wishing for more. So why is my stomach twisting? Why am I so anxious and nervous about this? Why does it feel like this is moving so fast and why does it hurt just saying all of this??”

He felt his soul sink at her words, her doubts. He should have known he was moving too fast, pushing too fast. Sadly, his hand wiped away the silent tears that were trickling down the side of her face before pulling his hand away.

Only for her to stop his hand from leaving her face.

“Wait.”

He waited, and he would have waited forever if she asked him. He watched as resolution occurred behind her closed eyelids before she found strength enough to open them and speak.

“I-I want to keep seeing you Papyrus. I-I think I want to go on more d-dates with you….if you want to-“

He wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tightly, “NOTHING WOULD BRING ME GREATER JOY!”

His soul sang even louder when she wrapped her arms around him, hugging him just as tightly as he held her. She was giving him a chance! There was hope yet!

 

Next chapter is called: Redolence Essence


	19. Redolence Essence

_(Author’s note- This chapter mentions the reader on her period. A bit gross, I know, but I wanted to_ _focus a bit on pheromones, scent and how monsters react to that side of things. I don’t plan to be explicit or to go into too many details on the female side of things. Feel free to skip this chapter if this doesn’t sound like your thing.)_

Papyrus walked Y/n back to her shop as the beach began to fill with other people at the end of their date, still early in the morning. No words were said between them beyond a softly spoken goodbye, that saw both of them smiling just as softly as they turned away from each other and separated. Y/n didn’t make a conscious decision to sit on the shop’s couch, but never the less, that’s where Felix found her as he came into for the day.

“Y/n?” He asked, waving his hand in front of her face when she didn't hear him come in.

“Hmm?” She hummed in confusion, looking up and completely surprised to see him there. “Felix? What are you doing here? It’s Sunday.”

“It’s Saturday.” He calmly replied, moving away.

“Oh.”

Now she was back to blushing again, but this time it was with thorough embarrassment.

“I’m such a trainwreck right now.” She proclaimed, facepalming.

Felix found himself patting her back, chuckling despite himself as he watched this kind human flounder with what he could only describe as one serious crush. He knew exactly who it was too, and the fact that Papyrus was a monster yet this human could still find herself enamoured with him…well, it made Felix feel just a bit hopeful for the future of human and monster relationships. It certainly made him more hopeful for his own future.

Maybe Metatton was onto something here with finding common grounds with humans?

Metatton! The thought of his real boss quickly sobered his smile as he watched Y/n still blushing under his paw. If HE could see that she was in love, it would be like a beacon to Metatton! He ADORED all of this romance stuff and would have a conniption that he hadn’t been the first to see this. Once he did find out, however, Metatton would probably drag Y/n and Papyrus in front of a live audience that would see him giving away a romantic getaway or something for them that would really just be an excuse to play matchmaker and show live feeds of them getting all lovey-dovey with each other. Felix could practically see Metatton already making this relationship into a reality show.

Bringing his attention back to Y/n, thinking about everything he knew about her, what she was like, and whether or not she would like that...

Metatton can’t know. Felix knew that he would, eventually, but he promised to himself and silently to Y/n that he would do everything in his power to delay that day…maybe try his hand at the impossible and try and curve his boss from his worst impulses.

Knowing just how unlikely that was, Felix let out a long sigh as he asked her, “I’ve, um, I’ve been meaning to ask, but how have you been going with the cooking book?”

Y/n sat back up as Felix pulled his hand back, tucking both hands deep into his pockets. Rubbing her arm, she admitted, “Well, we’ve got all the recipes selected and typed up, and we know how humans can cook with magic and I’m actually getting better with every lesson I’ve had myself…it’s just my section trying to explain it all that I’m struggling with.”

“Is it hard to put into words?” Felix asked, before hurriedly scratching the back of his head, “S-sorry. Metatton has been asking.”

“No, I understand.” Y/n stood up and moved to open the shop as she tried explaining it to Felix, “I’m just struggling with how to phrase it so that…other humans don’t jump to the wrong conclusions.”

“Anything I can help with?” He offered, taking his normal space behind the cash register.

“No. I just need to stop procrastinating.”

What she really needed was life to go back to how it was before Papyrus and all of these weird feelings entered her life. She could hardly think straight any more! Not that she actually wished that, of course, but concentrating on work and other projects had never been so hard before.

Felix had been watching her as she started doing inventory when he, at last, spoke up again, “I think you should take today off and get it done.”

Y/n quickly turned away from him, apologise already on her lips, “I’m sorry, I really am! I promise, I’m working on it as hard and as fast as I can-“

“Whoa! Calm down, human!”

Y/n was left standing there, holding the inventory clipboard protectively to her chest while she waited for him to give her a lecture about her irresponsibility and squandering her side of the agreement she had with Metatton. She knew it had been a mistake to be so ambitious! She wasn’t ready to work with a partner or to have someone basically commissioning her for work.

Y/n was quickly spiralling that she didn’t notice Felix had moved in front of her until she jumped at the contact of his paw on her shoulder. “Y/n, try to relax, okay? Metatton’s just eager (he’s always eager)…and even if he wasn’t’, I still think you could do with a day off. Focus on this thing and get it out of the way, right?”

“I can’t leave you again to look after my shop while I do something I really should have been working on more than I have.” She mumbled, unable to look at him.

Felix waved her off, “It’s not like you stay up there the whole time and don’t come down to help when things pick up. Just, you know, take some time to recover from whatever it was that happened to you this morning that had you smiling happily at the fireplace.”

Y/n felt her cheeks heat up before she couldn’t take it anymore and buried her face again in her hands. “Oh geez!”

Felix chuckled, patting her shoulder, “You’ll be okay. Just take today off, get it done, and it’s out of the way…Besides, if this book is successful, you can hire someone else, so you won’t feel this bad about taking the odd day off here and there.”

Y/n looked up to throw him a confused look, “You make it sound like you wouldn’t be here for much longer?”

“…I was only ever here until the book was published.” Felix rubbed the back of his head, “Technically speaking, I don’t work for you, Y/n. Metatton is still the one who signs my paychecks.”

“Oh.”

In all the weeks they had been spending with each other, she had…forgotten that Felix wasn’t just a work friend or even her employee; he was, and still is, Metatton’s assistant. Metatton had gracefully allowed Felix to work here so that she could have help getting this book done….and she had squandered that time.

Another one of her shortcomings.

Still, the idea of having to say goodbye to Felix left a bitter taste in her mouth and her heart feeling disheartened. It was a long shot, but..?

“Wo-would you stay here? If I paid you?”

He looked uncomfortable, “Metatton pays me a bit more than what I would be making here if I was just a retail worker. It-it isn’t like I don’t like working here!” He quickly corrected, “It-it’s just…not my dream to work in retail.”

“Oh.”

There was an awkward pause.

“I-I’m sorry.” He whispered, his ears dropping along with his hand on her shoulder.

Y/n placed her hand on his shoulder instead, patting him in comfort and support much like he had for her. “You have nothing to apologise for. I’m going to miss you, but I much rather you were happier than just hanging around for my sake.” She smiled softly at his wide eyes, “Besides, it’s not like you and I can’t see each other outside of the shop.”

His eyes only got bigger, “R-really??”

She beamed, “I hope so. If-if you want to, of cou-“

Felix wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tightly.

It didn’t take much for her to quickly return the hug back.

~*~

Y/n worked on and managed to get her section done that day as Felix worked the shop below. At first, she had struggled to write anything; the few lines she wrote down she kept changing, altering, adding and deleting huge sections before she would scrap everything and start at the beginning again. Staring angrily at the blank document before her, Y/n had felt frustration that everything she seemed to write could so easily and horribly be taken the wrong way. She felt the full weight that her words would have; they would literally be the first thing other humans would read before learning that monsters could and had been filling their energy-giving food emotions that could subtly influence the customer's mood.

But none of it was done with any ill intention!

But of course, she would say that; she would be considered a monster defender and advocate by people looking for any reason to discount her words. Everything she wrote, from justifying that it was just monster being monsters, that it was a part of their cultural, that there were limits to what they could and couldn’t do to food that didn’t run counter to their own soul’s intentions, she knew wouldn’t be listened by people already afraid.

What was she supposed to write to convince them to just see for themselves and not let fear hold them back???

Then, she thought about Papyrus and Felix, and any number of monsters who just wanted to be accepted for who they were and not hide what they could do.

Then she started typing:

_‘Dear Readers, both human and monster,_

_In this book, you will learn things about the other race that you didn’t know about before. Some of these things will confuse, alarm, or even upset you._

_And that’s okay._

_You’ll have good reasons to feel what you’re feeling, but if I could ask you for just one favour, it would be to come back and read these words, just this page, again when you feel these emotions flare up. If you can do just that one thing, it will go a long way to preventing a lot of hurt, on both sides. I hope that you do, but no one can force you. Never forget that._

_So, let’s begin._

_My name is Y/n L/n, one of the co-authors of this book you’re reading. Yes, I am human, and yes, the other co-author is a monster. His name is Papyrus, and when I met him, I had never really interacted with monsters beyond a polite ‘hi’ here and there._

_Maybe you could say pretty much the same thing. Maybe not._

_How I went from saying hi to him to writing this paragraph is one of the most baffling things I have gone through. Baffling, seemingly random at almost all times, and one of the most important processes that I have ever gone through. It’s important, not because I got to write this book, or meet new friends or got to go to new places I would never have otherwise, seen amazing sights…_

_But because I changed as a person. Not for better or worse, I just changed._

_I learned many things about monsters and myself, realised I had some fears about the other race that I was just too scared to ask. Scared of their power, scared to be seen as impolite, or even scared what other people would think if I was seen asking those questions by others._

_Maybe you could say pretty much the same thing. Maybe not._

_I got lucky. I was friends with Papyrus before I learned that humans could cook with magic. Pretty cool, right? With that knowledge, however, I learned something else that did upset me. Something that nearly had me running as far from Papyrus I could. I felt hurt, betrayed, tricked and lied to when I learned that monsters can infuse their food with emotions that could subtly affect how I was feeling, without me realising._

_Maybe you could say pretty much the same thing. Maybe not._

_It’s okay to feel whatever it is you’re feeling. I know I felt the worst of feelings and thought the worst of Papyrus. I thought of all the times I had eaten monster food, thinking I had been brainwashed all this time. I wanted to throw Papyrus out of my life, to run away from him and vow to never eat monster food ever again. In all honesty, the me before meeting Papyrus probably would have done that. But I didn’t._

_Because I had changed as a person. Not for better or worse, I had just changed._

_I allowed myself to feel these feelings, accepted them….then I asked questions._

_All of them._

_I laid out all of my fears, concerns and accusations at Papyrus’s feet….and then I listened to what he had to say._

_All of it._

_And then I changed, again, as a person. Not for better or worse, I just changed._

_I’m not here to tell you what to do. I’m just here to tell you that it’s okay to feel what you’re feeling. To stop, ask questions and listen._

_To change._

_-Y/n’_

Reading it back, it seemed on the sentimental side, and she fought the impulse to scrap this and instead go with a logical debate that would explain, point by point, all the counter-arguments she could already hear from all the critics and disbelievers.

But in the end, she realised that she was never going to convince everyone. There was no possible way to address every concern or argument….but if she could convince others to just ask questions instead, then maybe humans and monsters might have a more open conversation about this. Anything to prevent misconceptions and fear mongering.

After reading over that she had decided was her best attempt to avoid the worst of the possible fallout if people took this the wrong way, Y/n added this to the rest of the book, before sending it off to Metatton.

Hitting the send button felt like a great weight had both been lifted from her shoulders yet clamped down into place. It felt like something had been set in motion, and only time would tell if she had made the best decision.

~*~

Felix told her that it would take Metatton a few days to go over the book with his team before he would be ready to send it off to the publishers, but she could expect an answer by the end of the week. The stress of finally having what felt like the key decider if the book sold well or started some sort of monster-human incident done felt oddly liberating. It was very reminiscent of the feeling she had when she walked out of examination rooms back when she was still in university. She would find out just how good or bad she did later, but for now, she was just happy it was over.

Papyrus was certainly happy when she had told him during her lunch break she had taken at his café. He could hardly contain himself as he picked her up from her booth, spin hugging her before planting a huge kiss on her blushing cheek. Y/n couldn’t recall much after that; something about Pete scolding him for making a screen and embarrassing her while laughing.

The one thing she did clearly remember was Papyrus inviting her over for another sleepover to celebrate the book finally getting published.

“B-but-! W-we don’t know if that’s going to happen yet!” She had exclaimed, completely red and trying to hide this fact in a crowded café of onlookers.

Papyrus either didn’t notice or care as he happily insisted that it was going to happen; they would just have to wait for the end of the week.

“*GASP!* WHAT A PERFECT TIME FOR THE SLEEPOVER AND A CELEBRATION OF OUR EFFORTS!”

Pete had rescued her by this point, allowing her a chance to slip out once things had settled. Papyrus had come by her shop, later that day, to apologise for how he acted and to explain that he would understand if she didn’t want to have the celebratory sleepover now. Y/n had more than enough time to calm down from the whole scene in the café, to find it in herself to forgive Papyrus, and to understand that he just came from a well-meaning yet overzealous place, but the sleepover was a completely different matter in of itself.

While it wouldn’t be the first sleepover for them, it would be the first since Papyrus had proclaimed that he loved her. It would also be the first for her being consciously aware that she had feelings for him too.

He must have read some of the unease on her face, because he had taken her hands then and asked her softly, “DON’T YOU TRUST ME?”

And she did, so she agreed. Besides, Sans would be there…..she didn’t know if that made her feel better or worse.

The week ended with Metatton coming down in person to tell her that the book was currently being published as they spoke and that she and Papyrus would be getting the first copies. He was so excited and joyful that he couldn’t help himself and picked her up, hugging her much to her surprise and embarrassment. They had shared a joke about if she would consider selling the books at her shop before she waved him and Felix goodbye to close her shop for the night. Then she had to pack and catch the bus that would take her to Papyrus for the sleepover, the confirmed news still on her mind that made the night seem so much more alive with excitement and the thrill of it all. This was really happening! It wasn't just a draft or an idea anymore! Of course, as she left the bus and began the walk up the emptying street, laden with her bags, that didn’t stop her from being just as nervous now as she was on the very first time she visited Papyrus's house, carrying a Gyftmas present for him so many months ago.

 _‘The more things change, the more they don’t.’_ Y/n chuckled to herself as she knocked on his door. Still, her news was sure to get her another hug, even if he was still hugging her from greeting her at the door.

Rather than Papyrus in a maid outfit this time, she was greeted instead by Sans smiling lazily at her.

“hey y/n, how are you…today?”

A look of confusion came him before something seemed to click and his smile came back, a little forced now.

“Sans?” She asked, looking herself over, “Is something wrong?”

He looked nervous as he started to sweat, “nah. nothing’s wrong. why would anything be wrong?”

“You’re acting like something’s wrong.”

He just shrugged, before stepping aside, “come on in kid, nothing’s wrong i promise.”

Y/n stepped into the house, seeing not much had changed from last time, no Papyrus, and not at all believing Sans.

“Sans,” She said to him, watching him close the door and take a seat on the couch, “you would tell me if something was wrong, right?”

“i-…” He squirmed about on the couch, waving his arms about unsure, before dropping them with a sigh. “…you’re on your period, aren’t you?”

She blushed, clinging to her bags hard. “…I-….how do you know?”

 _‘Oh god! Was it showing?? Do I need to change??’_ She was already looking over herself, really tempted to make a run for it.

It was hard to say who looked more embarrassed between the two of them right now. Neither one of them was capable of looking the other in the eye right now!

“…monsters have a stronger sense of smell than you humans… you're producing...pheromones… and all that.”

“…Sh-should I go?” She asked quietly, so embarrassed and feeling really emotional right now.

Sans looked quickly back at Y/n, who felt close to tears, “no! i-i mean, not if you don’ want to.” He sighed heavily again, covering his eyes, “kid, i’m not going to pretend that either one of us wants to talk about this, but you’re fine, it’s a part of you being human. it’s just…that’s going to affect monsters around you for a while…especially paps.”

“How?” She whispered.

Sans rubbed the back of his skull, looking anywhere but her, “er…depending on how emotionally invested they are with you, you may notice some of us kind of…flocking to you….paps is probably going to be all over you…”

“…Wh-what is that suppose to mean?”

He sighed again, at last meeting her eyes, “you’re going to get hugged. like, a lot.”

Y/n thought back on Felix and Metatton,  and the surprise hugs she had gotten from both of them.

Something must have passed her face because Sans was nodding as he watched her, “guessing you’ve already seen a bit of that already?”

“I-I thought we were sharing a moment.” Thinking that Felix only hugged her because of how she smelled hurt more than it should have.

“hold up,” He patted the space next to him on the couch, “will ya sit next to me so i can properly explain while we still have time?”

She stared at the place he was still patting, debating on just leaving before this day got any worse, before she shrugged off her bags and sat as far as she could from him, feeling stiff and uncomfortable with her body.

“Where’s Papyrus?” She asked, realising that it was unlike him to be this long without greeting her…was that due to her pheromones too?

What if-?...Did Papyrus only like her too because of how she smelled to him?

Sans was still watching her, saw how her hands twisted in her lap as she kept her head bowed. Feeling his soul ache for her, he leaned over to pat her shoulder, squeezing her comfortingly, “now, none of that y/n. paps is still picking a few things from the store and i owe you a better explanation beyond me bumbling through my male monster awkwardness.”

That did get a small chuckle out of her, even if she couldn’t raise her head to look at him.

Encouraged by the chuckle, Sans pulled his hand back and explained, “now, we monsters are more than fully aware that human females have periods and that it means you produce pheromones that make us want to get closer to you. i guess i need to point out that these pheromones aren’t compulsive or anything; it’s a bit like smelling food, for a clumsy analogy. sure, it smells good, but no one’s diving face first into a cake, just because it smells good. for monster though, the more you like that particular human, the better they smell to you.”

“So, Papyrus is going to be…looking at me like cake?” Y/n blushed hard, her mind already running with that idea beyond her control.

Sans chuckled next to her, glad that she was still looking at her lap rather than him and his small blush. “more like a perfect plate of pasta. don’t worry though; he’s far too chivalrous to do anything. you’re perfectly safe around him, even like this.”

“I-I know,” She glanced up and over at Sans, wondering how he could be talking about all this so calmly when she would have pushed a book into the other person’s hands by now, “it’s just…I feel a little unfair about being here…like this. Isn’t it going to be hard for Papyrus to…behave?”

Sans facepalmed, throwing his head back, “oh boy, this conversation keeps wanting to go there, don’t it?”

“I’m sorry, but-“

“kid, i’m just joking here.” He peeked through his hands to look at her, his smile strained, “try to remember that i’m the older brother here…you’ve got a younger sibling, right? just imagine talking to them about sex and you’ll get a pretty good idea where i’m at.”

Y/n did think about explaining sex to her younger brother, who was actually in high school himself right now. The idea of explaining anything to him about this?....Yeah, most definitely giving him a book this year. ‘Why am I sweaty’ was a good book, definitely giving him that.

“anyway,” Sans continued, after clearing his voice, “sure, it’s going to be hard, but paps wants to be with you, and part of that means dealing with these things that make you human. think of it like this; you’ve had to accept a few things about him that i’m sure you wouldn’t have to if he wasn’t a monster, so it’s only fair he learns how to cope with this.”

“I guess.” She admitted, thinking about his food and his soul singing he mentioned last time, “But I don’t think it’s fair to compare them; none of them seem to be…this invasive.”

Sans chuckled, patting her knee affectionally, “you’re a good soul, y/n. like i said, we’ve been dealing with humans ever since we’ve come to the surface. you’re not the first human female who’s had their period around a monster, and you won’t be the last. for all the crap on the news, you don’t hear about random monster hugging attacks, do you?”

“If humans knew about this, there would be mass accusations of rape or something equally horrible.” That lead her to a different line of thought, one that produced a question from her lips without her really giving it any thought, “Can Papyrus even…you know?”

“yeah, nope.” Sans said, standing up from the couch and moving to the door, “i’m noping the hell out of this conversation and heading to grillbys. tell paps i said good luck, and you two have fun, okay?”

“Wait, Sans!”

He stopped by the door, patting himself down as he checked for phone and wallet. “hmm?”

“I didn’t mean to drive you from the house!” Her eyes dropped to her lap, blush coming back, “Me and Papyrus…we-we’re not there yet.” She looked back at him, determined to say this, “Tonight’s just a hang out to celebrate the book. It-it’s not a-a date or anything.”

Her sentence trialled off, leaving her looking at his shoes and feeling like such a social weirdo. Of course, she had made this weird; that’s all she ever did!

She was more than a little surprised when the shoes stepped closer to her and she looked up to see Sans approaching her.

“would it make you feel better if i admit i was planning to leave and give you two the house anyway?”

She blushed, “Wh-why would you do that?”

“…you know why.” He ruffled her hair affectionately, smiling softly at her, “you two don’t need a third wheel like me getting in the way. and, no offence, but i do have better things to do than just watching you two blush at each other the whole night.”

That comment certainly didn’t help, nor did Sans poking said blushing cheek!

“Sans!”

“hee, hee. just like that.” He took a step back, grinning at her playful glare before opening his arms wide. “aw hell, come here kid. give me a hug.”

“…I thought you said monsters knew better than to let human pheromones influence them into hugs.”

He shrugged, keeping his arms open, “s’what, we're not supposed to hug you on the off chance we’re being influenced? i’d like to hug you right now and that’s just how i feel.”

Smiling, Y/n pushed herself off the couch and hugged him, feeling him hug her tightly and firmly in return was rather comforting and much appreciated.

After a moment, they separated with Sans keeping his hands on her shoulders, gazing softly at her, “i don’t know who hugged you this week, but you should know that no one’s going to hug you who wasn’t inclined to in the first place, no matter what. got it? that's not how it works; you can't just suddenly want to get close to someone if the feelings weren't there.”

Her smile softened, “Got it. Thanks Sans.”

“no problem kid.”

The front door opened and Papyrus came in, bags hanging off every available space.

“SANS! IS Y/N HERE-“

He stopped dead, staring at Sans and Y/n in close proximity. Then his eyes locked on to her and Y/n felt her cheeks blush even more, now that she could guess what was making him look at her like that.

Chuckling, Sans walked away from her and past his brother, patting his stunned brother on the back.

“good luck, bro.”

And with that, Sans left, leaving Papyrus and Y/n just staring at each other.

 

Next Chapter is called: Cuddles and Nuzzles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! New Update and I'm still doing in role rping on my Discord server as any and every character I've got across all my stories, so if you wanted to know what some skeleton would say or respond to whatever action or thing you might say to them, hit me up using the @Rnd_Injustice thing (check out the rules if you need help) and I honestly shouldn't be more than a day or two responding.
> 
> Answering these is super fun for me, helps me flesh out all of these guys and makes me feel like the Discord actually serves a purpose. Beyond that, it's a free for all and open to everyone, so pop in (if you're so inclined)

**Author's Note:**

> I'll update at least once a month, the first Saturday. Enjoy =)  
> Check me out on my Discord Server for in character, Role Playing (rp) responses as any and every character I've got across all my stories, so if you wanted to know what some skeleton would say or respond to whatever action or thing you might say to them, hit me up using the @Rnd_Injustice thing (check out the rules if you need help) and I honestly shouldn't be more than a day or two responding.
> 
> My Discord Server= https://discord.gg/cg4p4ps  
> My tumblr account = https://rnd-injustice.tumblr.com  
> Please, ask me any questions and just have fun guys!


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